Killing the ‘seth’ culture

Letter February 01, 2015
It is safe to say that 99 per cent Pakistani seths are running companies on the basis of unprofessional practices

KARACHI: As a foreign graduate, I stopped myself three times from working for multinationals in Pakistan despite being offered huge salaries and good job scope, simply because I wanted to work for a Pakistani company. After spending three years and working for three Pakistani companies in various industries, I have come to the conclusion that Pakistani businessmen, known as seths, are to be blamed for Pakistan’s economic crisis. In this regard, I blame most Pakistani companies.

It is safe to say that 99 per cent Pakistani seths are running companies on the basis of unprofessional, unethical and uncultured practices. The Pakistani seth, who is uneducated in many cases, is the leader of his organisation and has contributed to the deterioration of Pakistan’s economy due to his myopic vision and poor business practices. I urge the federal government to amend labour laws and introduce the term seth and define it. This seth culture should be penalised. Only then can we hope to see healthy business practices and consequently a better economy for Pakistan.

Arsalan Akhtar

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2nd,  2015.

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