Tough decisions needed to fix the economy

    In 1972, after East Pakistan separated, Pakistan’s economy experienced a devaluation of over 100%. Despite this, the standard of living in that year was still relatively high. The worst possible outcome, with the right decisions, would be to return to that level of living standards.

Instead of focusing on who is responsible for the current crisis, the most important thing is to take steps toward finding a solution. Currently, Pakistan is unable to resolve these issues on its own, and external help is needed. Prudent decisions must be made, as the current situation of increasing salaries and benefits for government officials, parliamentarians, and the military while the majority of the population struggles with inflation, high utility tariffs, and shortages of essential goods is not sustainable. It is now necessary to accept the harsh conditions imposed by the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to survive, even though these conditions will greatly affect the lower and middle classes while having minimal impact on the elite.

Over the past 25 years, government officials, the judiciary, the military, and law enforcement agencies have been protected from inflation through regular increases in their compensation, which are often higher than inflation rates. However, the average worker has not been given this privilege and has suffered as a result. To address this imbalance, the government should announce a 20% cut in the salaries and benefits of all officials in grade 18 and above, including the judiciary and military, as well as a larger cut for parliamentarians and other rulers. This way, all members of society will share in the sacrifice and not just the ordinary citizens.

In addition, parliamentarians should be required to attend assembly sessions for at least four hours a day, or risk losing their benefits. Ministers, chief ministers, and the prime minister should also be required to attend their offices full-time, and not use official expenses for weekly trips to their home cities. Free power and gas facilities for officials and the ruling elite should be withdrawn, and luxury in the private sector should be heavily taxed to fund the common good. The government must announce and implement these measures before accepting the IMF’s conditions to ensure that the burden of sacrifice is shared fairly.