“OK so foreign exchange reserves are up again…”

“The begging bowl reserves.”

“Well that is no different from The Khan’s tenure or Dar’s or…”

“Attack is the best form of defence, hunh!”

“And in response to that proverb the Russians say they don’t need to fear enemies because the most they can do is attack. They need not fear friends because the most they can do is betray them. But they have much to fear from people who are indifferent.”

“Well then The Khan should have no fear because no one but no one out there is indifferent if you know what I mean.”

“Well I must say our politicians, all of them, have the capacity to generate emotions – love, hate, anger, jealousy – but there is absolutely no room for indifference.”

“OK so what’s this about the begging bowl? I mean why is it always projected as an accomplishment?”

“That’s the way the cookie crumbles here besides this accomplishment has never ever been at the level of the finance minister. I mean if Miftah Ismail as the finance minister goes a begging I doubt if any doors would open…”

“Ah but if he accompanies…”

“Right and that has been the case with all finance ministers — Tarin, Sheikh, Umar, Ismail, Dar, Sheikh and Tarin again…”

“Given the worsening of all the sectors’ performance based on sustained poor governance and no out of the box thinking why do the appointers of finance ministers get the same people again and again and again ad nauseum…”

“You have to marvel at the appointers. Remember Einstein’s definition of insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.”

“Hmmm, so Dar is returning, an accountant…”

“Right but Dar, I would have you know is sitting in the back seat this time.”

“The back seat of his own car! The driver does not own the company he is on a salary…”

“Is it under 50,000 per month because that is exempt from tax?”

“Don’t be facetious, besides remember the nursery rhyme of Jack Sprat and his wife – he could eat no fat and his wife could eat no lean and together they licked the platter clean.”

“Well the platter is extremely large and…”

“Hush.”

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022