“A government that robs Peter to pay Paul can always depend on the support of Paul.”—George Bernard Shaw

The present government in Pakistan that has somewhat nervously established itself, though completely fraught post one of the most questionable elections in the country’s checkered history held on February 8, 2024, has yet to overcome one of its biggest hardships—the upcoming budget for the fiscal year 2024-25.

Surrounded in an ocean of apparently insurmountable economic complexities, hyper-inflation, burgeoning debts, an out-of-control, unskilled bulge of young population, a hawkish media quick to spring upon any bit of information they can exploit, the new government has yet not provided the people with a solid blueprint on how they intend to set the future course of this country.

There appears to be no plan to address the problems of the common people, who are the real victims of extremely bad fiscal policies, causing industries to shut down, halting economic growth, rising unemployment and resultantly putting modest families in circumstances where earning some money is becoming a herculean task. Those include handicapped, widows and orphans, who until some time ago were barely eking out a respectable living, are now compelled to seek charity for not only marrying off their young daughters, for meeting emergency medical needs, but also for providing even a single meal for sustenance. Each day, more and more people are finding themselves in economic blackholes, thanks to imprudent government policies, and each day more and more people are openly or covertly begging before anyone who can give them a few........

© The Friday Times