Inflation beyond control
INFLATION has broken all highest records with the advent of Ramzan when welfare states in Europe super markets announce Ramzan Packages for essential items of daily use “Buy one take 2” while our administration fails to control prices and supply of grocery items in the open market to the poor faithful in Ramzan. Every financial and economic student knows when State Bank unscrupulously starts increasing interest rate to promote banking mafias that in-turn raises inflation and only poor poverty stricken majority suffers and the 8% rich elite benefitted from these bad policies. Government expenditure to siphon off taxpayers money received in budgetary allocations on wasteful and unproductive heads of account when Ata that was sold for Rs. 13/- per Kg in 2003 is now being sold for more then 125/- per kg likewise all other items of daily use and civic services including utility bills have also multiplied many times in the absence of District and Tehsil level price control authorities. Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif has fallen in trap of civil servants’ advice of photo sessions of distributing free ata to PML-N political cronies.
We had umpteen times suggested to announce damage controlling policies to provide relief and avert seeds of anarchy spreading fast from East to West and South to North due to such bad moves. Food Stamp programme according to income standards of public and private sector employees would be a useful approach, monthly stimulus packages cash assistance to people registered under Shaheed Benazir Income Support program is another way-out or launch cash Ramzan assistance to every public and private sector employed or unemployed worker identified according to NADRA records within next seven days of Ramzan that may provide a sigh of relief and save the majority of poor people from present difficulties of life due to political and judicial wrangling, that serve only handful of people while majority is crying for Divine intervention. Before it is too late, the ruling junta has to realize their basic civic duty and responsibility to save the masses from the onslaught of the financial and economic tsunami.
State Bank’s ill-conceived monetary policies are adding fuel to fire by continuously increasing the rate of interest, the root cause of socio-economic slaughtering of the poor ones by the hoarders and black marketers. All our Regulators and Administrations seem to be hand in gloves with exploiters allowing free for all to private foreign banks that are still transferring their locally earned heavy profits to parent countries in US dollars, another major cause of shortage of foreign exchange. Second reason is high profile dignitaries keeping hundreds of million cash funds at their homes apparently for money laundering through money changers and Hawala transactions and other unconventional channels remain unchecked flouting the laws, whereas the FATF & IMF designed sword of Consumer Due Diligence, a method of controlling corruption of funding extremist outfits by money laundering is being applied against local commercial bank account holders to discourage left over economic activity and create hurdles under patronage of State Bank, SECP and Finance Ministry that refuse to play their lawful role considering these banks as “Holy Cows” or untouchable due the their connivance with banking mafias.
Imperative need of time is to consider ways and means how to control prices escalation and present current account deficit and balance of payment problems surging due to artificial foreign currency shortage and transferring foreign exchange under the garb of profits by foreign banks and multinational conglomerates that people’s daily life has to face the brunt of this entire gimmick. I am surprised to see in Karachi DHA phase 4, 5, 6 & 7 all main and branch roads fully carpeted Khyabans broken to construct rainwater disposal drains by wasting trillions of rupees received from our taxpayers money 70% of which will go into pockets of those controlling this extravaganza when country is facing challenges of default and bankruptcy during the ongoing financial year 2022-2023 Clifton Cantonment Board & DHA development expenditure accounts be placed on Websites for public scrutiny. Pollution and spread of viral diseases is yet another cause of this ill-conceived, which will not provide any better results as the rain water drains constructed by DHA in 2006-7 in DHA has failed rather resulted in deaths due to accumulation of water on Seher and Rahat due to electrocution. Throwing good public revenue money for useless official corruption will not provide any relief during rain time when people are starving to buy two square meals a day.
The ongoing foreign and domestic bashing to build political pressure against our civil and defense institutions targeting their political adversaries by vested interest political group and failure of government in establishing its writ is alarming, if you are unable to deliver let Parliament debate and sort out things agitating general public minds to rescue the nation out of this chaos and malfunctioning. Apex courts are also being blamed for a bipartisan attitude; some foreign stooges have also started instigating for intervention after failing in duty of serving their own constituents in Europe and now prompting our courts to intervene to pave the way for anarchy. The extremity of such epidediencies, need to be tackled with iron hands to secure our sovereignty, national solidarity and unity first. Democracy and holding of elections on a given schedule is not a Divine law. Parliament should take a leaf from other countries like Israel where parliament has recently elaborated about doubts on sovereignty of parliament in smooth functioning of elected government.
Tail piece: my nephew called me on Sunday from his bank opened on holidays to receive Hajj Applications; Hajj is one of five pillars of Islam. I was surprised to hear the cost of Rs, 117,000/- per adult, for political mileage. PM Shahbaz Sharif was seen one day distributing free ata bags from a truck but rest he has perhaps left on the Almighty, prices of grocery have doubled tripled making it unaffordable to common man. Bangladesh while realizing public difficulty has ordered construction of a 32 storey ship to start operation from 2024 to carry Hajj pilgrims at an affordable cost to Saudi Arabia. India’s Hajj package is around 390,000/- Indian Rupee. Perhaps the Pakistani government is patronizing black marketers and money mafias to avail their policy which is 50% reserved for sponsorship that only people involved in corruption of money laundering and Hawala can avail from this loophole. The Holy month of Ramzan requires soul searching by rulers, politicians, business tycoons and civil and military bureaucracy to not make the life of teeming million so hard and difficult. Allah may bless Pakistan & humanity.
