Anatomy of financial horrors

The country faces the worst crises till date

Those who have witnessed the wildest shenanigans and petty compulsions that drive most if not every financial decision taken over the last decade or so could probably write a hugely popular comedy-horror genre that is bound to enjoy dark runaway success. But in the effort to redefine the genre tragedy upon tragedy, layer by layer would richly unfold in all its uncomfortable and ugly pathos before the unsuspecting public. Fact after all is stranger than film fiction by a yard. It is in this spirit that we commend the government’s resolve to create a parliamentary committee to probe the financial decisions taken during the last 10 years that resulted in the worst financial crises the country was in today. It is not just important to pick out the villains of this comic-tragedy but we need every ounce of good sense and wisdom that we extract from our financial horror of horrors. Pakistanis ought to be told the tale in its bitterest and goriest detail. So rather than ask whether our parliamentarians and citizens have the stomach for it, we should insist on nothing but the whole truth. It is comforting to know that as Information and Broadcasting Minister Fawad Chaudhry has promised that the government will not baulk at naming, shaming and punishing those responsible for the financial disasters that have befallen the state. This is essential if we are to avoid the poor and unsound decisions of the past. The present government will have to put in place greater oversight controls and from now on scan minutely each and every financial decision that its wizards come up with. Unfortunately the process of scrutiny does not come easily in Pakistan as it should perhaps elsewhere on the globe. Closer supervision of the relevant bodies could guarantee the kind of decision-making that the state needs. There must be sufficient understanding that fiscal policy decisions and fiscal management suffer as a result of inadequate measurements, with serious consequences for fiscal stability, strength and resilience. The surge in foreign debt from Rs6,000 billion to Rs30 trillion deserves prime attention.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 13^th, 2018.

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