Neither loan nor loot.

Yesterday during discussion with a major construction group, one of the Directors mentioned that they work with their own limited capital, they neither borrow nor earn interest on their reserves. In other words they follow 'interest-free finances.

I was not surprised to hear this, and in fact I praised their strength as their wealth was genuine and earned. It reminded me of my father's strict adherence to this principle. When the flood gates of debt were opened during the Ayub regime many were opposed to this unnatural, so-called fast-track development that opened the gates of quick money and corruption.

Borrowed money is usually misspent and consumed as if there is no payback time. Coming from a family of upright and honest entrepreneurs, I could feel the agony in their lives created by this artificial injection of interest-bearing borrowed wealth. Till October 1958, the family were leaders of the watch business with import licenses and retail outlets. Instead of the lure of debt, they decided for an honest living. Only one string of the family remains in the business of the ancestors. Following the principles of honest hard work and interest-free money, this fourth generation family member has built a thriving business of manufacturing Wall Clocks.

It reminds me of the famous line quoted by my college friend Asif Khosa, the former Chief Justice of Pakistan (CJP), ' Behind every fortune there is a crime '. In his historic judgement that disqualified the three-time Prime Minister of Pakistan he mentioned the Sicilian Mafias and the Godfathers.

It is wisely said, ' All that glitters is not gold '. This artificial shine of loan and loot is in fact a mirage that has kept the people of Pakistan entrapped for several decades, it is time to unshackle ourselves and rise as a free nation.

As the country today faces a serious debt trap it is time to re-evaluate our money management practices. A nation that relied on its own resources till October 1958 before the first dictator took control today is a debtor that cannot even pay interest on its loans. Where has all the money disappeared?

I read an interesting clip which narrated a man-eating incident in the African state of Congo. The French Ambassador was trapped by cannibals while hunting in the forest. When the news of his feasting reached Paris, the government demanded compensation for his death. As the impoverished nation was unable to pay, they offered in return the sacrifice of their...