Business and the boots.

Byline: Afshan Subohi

THE country's business community is shocked and nervous over the court verdict in retired Gen Musharraf's treason case. It is hard to say if it is fear, shock or sadness that dominates their reaction. The majority, however, predicts a neutral impact on businesses as the dust settles down in a few weeks.

Bankers, barons and brokers fondly recalled the 'golden times' (from 2002 to 2006) when they were facilitated to multiply their wealth exponentially in speculative markets and the economy grew at rates rarely achieved before and never after.

In 2005, Pakistan hit the annual growth rate of 7.6 per cent, more than double as compared to 3.6pc in 1999 when Musharraf toppled the Nawaz Sharif government and self-appointed himself as the chief executive of the country.

It is another story that the growth rate proved to be too fragile and crashed to a mere 1.7pc in 2008, the year Musharraf was forced to resign. It took Pakistan 10 long years under successive PPP and PML rules to scale up the growth rate to 5.4pc in the 2018-19 fiscal year before it slipped back once again under Prime Minister Imran Khan's tenure.

Optimists in the government project a growth rate of 3.4pc during the ongoing fiscal year, but most assessments place it under 3pc.

The growth spurt during the Musharraf-Shaukat Aziz rule is generally attributed to a dollar windfall in the wake of 9/11 after Musharraf capitulated to a US ultimatum and sided with the West on the 'war on terror'.

However, critics point to mismanagement of generous dollar inflows in that period. The country witnessed bubbles in the capital and property markets instead of strengthening of infrastructure and basic industry. However, the undeniable fact remains: the country's growth did spike in Musharraf's time.

Background interviews with businessmen confirm that gainers of the period remember their benefactor and own him even after the court declared him a traitor. The level of support in the corporate circles for a retired military general who hung his boots over a decade back was astonishing. Many leaders shared fond memories of their personal interactions with the Musharraf-Shaukat Aziz duo.

Thinking heads in the corporate Pakistan were seriously worried, as they did not see the decision as a one-off expression of judicial activism. They reckon that the special court's decision could be potentially disruptive. They found it to be reflective of changes of tectonic proportions, bringing...