The ritual of preparing and presenting Federal Budget proposals begins in the Chambers, Trade Associations, Service Providers as well as Professionals, months before the “B-Day” in Parliament.
Year in and year out, the tradition continues, culminating in the proposals being presented to the Minister of Finance.
At the same time, expensive coloured advertisements in the newspapers APPEAL by various Associations to the decision-makers to save their sector from impending disaster.
Business leaders and professionals make it a point to do intensive lobbying in Islamabad, incurring millions in airfare, hotels, food and transportations.
The optimism and hope balloon of nearly all of them is generally gets pricked as soon as the budget is announced because most of their efforts have again gone into the swamp.
Meanwhile, sitting comfortably in clubs and in drawing rooms, are the elite capture and vested interests who have months before the budget presentation, already settled their demands and achieved their objectives through their influence in various ministries and in the political dispensation.
The movers and shakers confidently and without remorse, jeer and snigger at the efforts of leaders of these trade bodies and professionals.
They know that they have the critical mass and they know how to protect, promote and project their vested interests.
The business leadership, primarily due to its own fault, has been divided like never before.
Those external forces who wanted this situation have succeeded beyond any doubt.
Business leaders are relegated to making welcome addresses, presenting plaques and singing high praises of people who are guests of trade organizations.
Lunches and dinners, laudatory phrases, photo-ops and making irrelevant statements are the tools employed to lobby people who matter.
Former State Bank of Pakistan Governor, Dr Ishrat Hussain, once very candidly warned the business community about the perils of this approach.
He has been proven right, so many times.
This year, the business leadership must counsel the Opposition in Parliament to cool down and understand the complexities and events that would be incorporated in the budget.
Political point scoring on non-essential issues must be discouraged.
Notwithstanding this, it is the fundamental right of parliamentarians to agitate proposals such as unwarranted allocations for pork barrel projects that are primarily beneficial for Treasury Bench members or for white elephant initiatives, or wasteful non-development expenditure.
The ruckus and free-for-all which are the hallmark of the budget session must be restrained.
It should be a consensus national budget for times are difficult.
The private sector should also lavish accolades to Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb for his efforts, especially when external and domestic fireworks are impacting daily.
To some extent, the 2025-26 Budget would take into account the imperatives of national security, with absolutely no thanks to Modi’s belligerence.
He has to deal with serious IMF conditionalities, political instability and deep polarization, electricity, gas, fuel prices and increasing poverty, all strong, menacing and foreshadowing factors that must be addressed.
The Finance Minister must accept pragmatic proposals from the private sector, even if these proposals dent to some extent the revenue collection.
Both the Finance Minister and the private sector must be on the same page.
SIFC can increase its outreach and get all stakeholders moving uniformly in the right direction.
This should also be the Year of Youth.
Can a nerdy Pakistani start a business, find capital at a reasonable price that doesn’t tie his hands, not have to take VIP partners, not have tax collectors take him to the cleaners, not have petty government functionaries hound and harass him, doesn’t fall victim to extortionists and street criminals and sincerely have recourse to honest courts in the event of commercial disputes?
When the answer is yes, Pakistan is getting close to being a competitive state.
The exodus of talent must be discouraged and the Finance Manager can be the motivating force through the budget.
There should now be a well-planned strategy to move away from traditional budget making, taxing the already taxed, turning a blind eye to corruption, controlling under-invoicing, mis-declaration and smuggling as well as reliance on indigenous resources.
The last few years were akin to the movement of the ocean for trade and industry.
The restless ups and downs, the forceful waves and ebbing of the tide and the mariner’s safety signals and the lifeguard’s red warnings to stay away from the high seas aptly describe the economy of Pakistan.
2025 could be considered as a defining moment in chartering the future course of Pakistan’s economic survival and economic prosperity.
This is the hope.
All these years, Pakistan has been in a state of plus ca change, plus c’est la meme chose.
(The more things change, the more they stay the same).
The writer is former President of Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry. (majydaziz@gmail.com)
