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"Oil prices have declined."
"Through an executive decree no less."
"I thought we had a free market..."
"In your dreams!"
"Anyway oil prices have been decreed to decline but not by as much as in the international market place - the difference in percentage terms is quite significant."
"This is the Chosen One's definition of a free market mechanism at work?"
"Sounds quite similar to our new and improved democracy."
"Indeed. This is the new and improved free market mechanism."
"At least we are redefining old and tried..."
"Don't be facetious."
"But why did he decrease the price of oil? Why now?"
"Because inflation was on the rise."
"It is on the rise but our Chosen One is patiently waiting for the trickle-down theory to take effect, whether it takes 20 or 30 years..."
"Maybe because his popularity was on the wane..."
"He can't win an election from anywhere in any case so I don't think its about popularity with him."
"Maybe because elections are coming up soon..."
"He vehemently denied elections had anything to do with this decision."
"Methinks he protested too much."
"But the most likely cause is that Musharraf told him to decrease the oil price."
"Agreed as that's a command no one in Government can ignore."
"True, so true, but there could be another rationale."
"What?"
"That he genuinely wanted to provide some relief to the poor people and that..."
"Give me a break. If he did he would reduce the Cabinet as well as stop taking all these unnecessary foreign trips and focus on what he is good at."
"Playing golf?"
"No sorting out the economy."
"Is he good at that?"
"Well, I feel a lot poorer after his seven years as Finance Minister but then what do I know."
"Right you are a fundamentalist, what the Chosen One wants is an enlightened moderate who will view his policies with a heavy doze of liberalism."
"Liberalism defined as acceptance of the new and improved version of a free market mechanism."
"Yes."

Copyright Business Recorder, 2007

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