KARACHI: Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, Mian Zahid Hussain said that investment alone cannot improve the situation unless structural reforms are made, for which the role of ‘incompetent’ bureaucracy in important decisions must be eliminated.
These decisions can be effective only when political stability is ensured, anarchist politicians are disciplined, and terrorism is eradicated, he observed.
He said that Chief of Army Staff General Asim Munir’s interest in economic matters is very encouraging. His meeting with the business community leaders has boosted the morale of the businessmen and industrialists across the country, he added.
Mian Zahid said that the commitment of the COAS to improve the country’s economy and attract foreign investors is commendable, but the most important thing is the assurance of continuing the IMF programme and starting a new one.
He said that the Army Chief is well aware that the IMF programme is indispensable and that the economy can be stabilised under the supervision of this international organisation, but it is impossible to increase the growth rate. But the basis of the decision to boost the economy will not be cheap fame but better economic conditions in the country, he added.
He said that the Army Chief is serious about bringing transparency to the value of the US dollar, keeping an eye on currency traders and bringing them into the tax net, ending smuggling from Iran and Afghanistan, and increasing tax revenue. COAS is also hopeful for investment of 100 billion dollars from Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and other countries through the Special Investment Council and its implementation will greatly help stabilise the economy.
Mian Zahid said that if this investment is made, it will improve the country’s economic situation, stabilise the rupee, and solve the problem of a lack of foreign exchange.
He said that General Asim Munir’s opinion is correct that the annual expenditure of 1.3 trillion rupees on failed government owned entities is counterproductive and it is better to sell them to save this capital.
He noted that army chiefs had held many meetings with the business community in past, but they did not yield any results, so it is the primary responsibility of all stakeholders to make the current meeting fruitful.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2023