Media watch: Economy in the flood aftermath

After such a large scale of devastation, all stakeholders need to work with each other to overcome the challenges.

Media watch is a daily round-up of key articles featured on news websites, hand-picked by The Express Tribune web staff.

A cruel joke

Mr Gilani should have known that his own government had generally failed Pakistanis badly, the latest failure being their neglect in the face of rushing floods. It had been slow to move and even when it did extend help it was marginal. Largely, either the people helped themselves or the armed forces or private welfare organisations rescued them from the submerged areas and have been taking care of them since. (nation.com.pk)

Towards a bail-out plan for the poor

An economic disaster on this scale can hardly be expected to be surmounted through mobilising only domestic resources in a low-income, developing country, where state machinery and supporting infrastructure have attritioned largely through neglect and under-investment - SM Naseem. (dailytimes.com.pk)

Too many cooks

All the provinces appear agreed that they have received material assistance – but what they wanted was money, the money to start the work of rehabilitation. Provincial budgets are not sufficient to the demands of rehabilitation and the provinces cannot go ahead without being given the money for the job. (thenews.com.pk)

Economy: on the verge of collapse?

The blame must be shared by everyone. At the federal level, the government has been disastrously uninterested in reforming the tax system or trimming the fat in the budget. Public-sector enterprises blow a Rs250bn hole in the budget each year, but restructuring is something that is only promised, never initiated. (dawn.com)

Fiscal response to the flood aftermath

In order to provide some relief to the common people, it would be better to subject non-essential items and luxury goods to higher rates of import duty and exempt the essential items from this levy. So far as surcharge on income tax is concerned, it is regrettable that we continue to impose higher burden on the people who are already in the tax net while the tax evaders are not affected by such measures and continue to enjoy the liberty of dodging the tax collectors even in the worst of circumstances now confronting the country. (brecorder)