.. by Javed Khan
Another budget is being prepared by people who are not true representatives, another exercise in hedging and fudging to survive one more year in the corridors of power, to amass more wealth, enjoy free perks and privileges and all this in the name of nearly 270 million stressed out Pakistanis who will be burdened more.

I am no financial expert but having lived for nearly 80 years and been fortunate enough to be able to travel the world know that fixing an economy is no rocket science particularly for a nation in which our potential has not even been scratched, all we need is sincere, honest and able leadership; sadly in the last 78 years after Jinnah, this has been missing.

Every president, PM and their coterie of hangers on without exception have only looked after their self interest. Most of our national debt is parked in their personal wealth here and on foreign shores and every year our budget caters to this.  No meaningful reforms in our economy which can encourage investment and production, no check on corruption, no ease for doing business but the same routine giving more power to tax collectors instead of making paying tax simple, there is talk of increasing withholding tax , instead of giving incentive to generate wealth we are penalizing those who have legitimate savings parked in the banking system.

What is stopping the government from doing away with the luxury and waste that are official perks, why can’t a salary suffice like in every civilised nation. Imagine the finance minister being given powers to enhance honorariums of staff working with the PM’s secretariat. No priority for education, health, water storage or agriculture which employs the majority of our workforce.

Had we invested in constructing 15 to 20 large dams today most of our land would be productive, we could be exporting grain and fruits instead of importing, our people would not go hungry or their children stunted through malnutrition; our electricity would have been produced cheaply to power industry and nobody would have needed to steal energy and there would have been no circular debts.  We could have become an industrialised nation earning through exports .

Even now it not too late, our defence services have earned us a breather, let’s not waste this opportunity by only beating our chests or polishing their boots. .. Javed Khan, Islamabad 04 June 2025