LAHROE: The Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce & Industry’s Businessmen Panel (BMP) has said that the country is at the crossroad, as bringing the economy back on track is imperative to restore political stability and to overhaul the bureaucratic machinery.
The FPCCI former president and BMP Chairman Mian Anjum Nisar said, here on Sunday, that the economic and fiscal discipline of the country will be driven under the direction of IMF, leaving little room for political parties to make its way, which has not come up with any plan to fix the economy and provide relief to the trade and industry.
Quoting the media reports, he said that the SIFC’s role as advisors and decision-makers may work well. But, when it comes to the implementation of the decisions and delivery on ground, there are multiple bottlenecks. The executing entities in the public sector are politicized, compromised, outdated and lack competence.
Mian Anjum Nisar said that the economy of the country is at the stake now, as the state of the economy and peoples’ welfare are of secondary interest to the political parties and little has so far been achieved at macro or micro levels. Higher inflation, rising utility tariffs, growing unemployment and, above all, the malaise and despondency among the masses are likely to continue unattended.
Economic vulnerability now looms with political uncertainty at its core. The Moody’s Investors Service has recently given a ‘credit negative’ signal to Pakistan in the face of prolonged political ambiguity and social tensions over election results, which will make it tough to approach the IMF for a new program, weaken external economy and make liquidity management more challenging.
He said that the privatization commission of Pakistan is struggling since months to effectively put in place the privatization of loss-making public sector enterprises; notably, the Pakistan Steel Mills and Pakistan International Airlines despite the urgency and concern expressed, time and again, by the IMF. The election held on Feb 8th in Pakistan threw up a number of surprises with a significant shift in the country’s political landscape.
With no political party commanding a 2/3rd majority at the centre, nor even a simple majority, the decision-making processes and any constitutional amendment are likely to be driven and influenced more by conflicting self-interests of the coalition partners, watering down the key objectives. This is not what the country needs in these unprecedented times of political and economic challenges confronting the nation.
In its report titled ‘Political uncertainty persists in Pakistan following inconclusive election results, a credit negative’, the global credit rating agency said: ‘overall, uncertainty around Pakistan’s ability to quickly negotiate a new IMF program after the current one expires in April 2024 remains very high. Pakistan’s government liquidity and external vulnerability risks will remain very high until there is clarity on a credible longer-term financing plan.’
Copyright Business Recorder, 2024
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