' Tough But Unpopular Decisions.

Finance Minister Miftah Ismail had yet not finished revealing the additional measures, he was forced to insert in proposals for the fisAcal 2022-3 to increase revenues, when the 'breaking news' began blinking on our mobile phones. It reported the crash of the Stock Exchange in Karachi.

Even for an economic-illiterate like me, the news smacked of communiAcating a loud NO by a peculiar group of investors relishing absolute moAnopoly over a definite set of profAit-yielding businesses. They obviousAly disapproved the suggestion that to protect millions of shirtless PakiAstanis from stifling poverty, the state

must collect more from the SuAper Rich of this country.

Even after 'the breaking news,' the finance minister didn't apApear wavering. Being a scion of a highly successful business famiAly himself, he rather kept insistAing that extraordinary pressures on our economy had forced such taxation. And there is no escape to it. Not only his own family, but the son of Prime Minister SheAhbaz Sharif and Shahid Khaqan Abbassi, a former prime minisAter, would also be paying the 'suAper tax,' he had introduced.

Miftah Ismail was delivering the winding up speech that fiAnance ministers usually make after finishing of the general discussion in the National AsAsembly on budgetary proposAals. The House is instantly adAjourned after this speech.

It didn't happen Friday. The Speaker had to give floor to seAnior ministers like Syed KhurAsheed Shah, Sardar Ayaz Sadiq and Khawaja Asif. All of them provided substantial support to the finance minister's initiaAtive. Doing this, they also took on 'cartels' of big businesses. The ministers had to admit that successive governments of PaAkistan had consistently been faAcilitating and pampering these cartels. Instead of appropriately taxing their profits, they shameAlessly kept borrowing and begAging from foreign countries and global lenders to meet defiAcits in annual budgets. Finally a stage has come where even the 'brotherly countries' are relucAtant to finance our deficits.

After replacing Imran Khan through a vote of no-confidence the unity government of eleven parties, found it extremely difAficult to avert 'default.' To preAvent the same, it was forced to massively increase the prices of petroleum products. Yet, the lender of last resort, the InterAnational Monetary Fund (IMF), was not satisfied. It kept pressAing for additional measures to ensure revenue collection from domestic resources. That forced the...

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