Self Explainatory

In view of the recent hike of petroleum products, the soaring prices of sugar and flour, if someone has a complaint, please contact the complaint centre for “immediate solution of your grievances.”
The advertisement above reads, “If your rights are being vandalized, then don’t delay and call the complaint centre.” The advertisement is issued to “protect the rights of citizens” and to rid the society from all types of crimes. The advertisement clearly indicates categories under which you may contact the complaint centres. Beside others, following are also listed:-

• Mental and physical torture (impact of price hike is both mental and physical)
• Non availability of food (If sugar, flour and other household items are beyond the reach of common man, there would be no food for the family)
• Blackmailing and harassment (on the pretext of a better future)
• Bhatta Khori (forcible collection of donations)
• Miscellaneous (covers all)

So hurry up and avail this golden opportunity if you feel aggrieved, harassed, blackmailed or unable to provide food to your family. And a splendid time is guaranteed for all.

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We need a good Pied Piper

When the present democratic government took over, people saw a light on the other side of the mountain. Everyone awaited the new government to address their grievances for a better living. But now after a couple of years, the perception of people is changing. The very “awami” government has made the living of the “awam” miserable and difficult. The term “awam” was originated by the founder of the PPP, Mr Zulfiquar Ali Bhutto, which he used for the poor and downtrodden ordinary people of Pakistan. For the “awam” he was the good pied piper to lead them out of the mess they had been living in for years, rather than taking to the valley of death (as did the legendary pied piper did). Well did he?

We all know that he did not – and even every successive government used this magic word to gain sympathies and votes to win the elections and then rule the very “awam” and lead them to more miseries and poverty. Let me explain. The price of flour from Rs. 300 per kilogram in 2008 has soared to Rs. 530 and is increasing. Suddenly sugar selling at Rs. 27 started gaining momentum and as of today it is almost touching Rs.100. Price of one dozen eggs is now Rs. 80 (I bought last night) as against Rs. 35 in year 2008.

The electricity is falling like a thunderbolt on the awam. The government has decided to increase the cost per unit by 2pc per month taking to 35pc in coming months. While the country has the power generation capacity of some 21,000 MW, only 12,000-15000 MW is being produced and remaining capacity remains uncapped. Instead of utilizing the installed capacity and potential, the government has decided to import RPPs (as the once imported the IPPs in Benazair’s first term in the office). The cost per unit of electricity from the RPPs is going to be much higher than the IPPs.

And remember, all these power projects are thermal based, which will be run on fuel imported from outside. Fuel – which operates cars and motorcycles, public transport, railways and aircraft. Fuel which will also operate RPPs. Fuel which is very expensive, fuel which can make people richer and richer. And this is what is going on for quite sometime now. The recent price hike of fuel prices by 8% is going to have its effects multiplied. Not only will it make the life of Awam more miserable as even using motorcycle will become difficult to maintain. The fares of public transport will increase, and those who do not own any transport, will have to pay more for commuting to their place of work. The prices of eatables and other household items will correspondingly increase as these are transported in the public transport.

The viscous circle has been set into motion with the recent price hike of the fuel. Now whatever remains in the pockets of the poor will be taken out and will be used to make rich more rich and richer. Poor will go down many notches from the exiting level of their subsistence. This one decision of increase in fuel prices is going to have far reaching effects on every facet of life of the awam – the poor ordinary people who cannot do but mourn the demise of their living, if any there was before.

It seems whenever there is a crisis, the entire burden is thrown on the shoulders of the poor. But does any bit of it is ever shared by the government? Never, as one can see the lavish spending and visits abroad. We have ministers and aides more than the USA for a country much smaller in size and population. The high officials have unmatched perks and privileges despite the fact that poor are dying of hunger. People talk of change of government, but would it make any difference if party B or C succeeds and gets elected? Unless our mindset is changed and we realize that we are a poor nation, striving hard to survive, nothing would any meaningful change. Our ground realities must be translated into long drawn strategies to combat poverty and reducing corruption at the top. The life style of our top must reflect that of a poor nation, and not that of USA or any advances country, where presidents and others travel in bullet proof cars. In our case, even minister have started using these very expensive cars as if when the angel of death when it comes will go back empty handed since the-would-be-dead was traveling in a bullet proof car.

We desperately need to change our outlook to solving problems. We need to curtail our expenses drastically, starting from the top, rather than increasing prices for the poor. Let us live as humble and poor and then build up ourselves be diverting every penny for development of infrastructure, industry, agriculture to boost our exports and reduce reliance on imports. We can live without expensive imported toiletries, canned foods ad big cars, which all are purchased using our precious foreign exchange reserves. If we don’t change our lifestyle, we would be doing more harm to this nation of ours and its poor awam and its future.

The wake up signal has been given. We need our pied pipers to lead us to life, not to miseries and ultimate death as did the Pied Piper of Hamelin.

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Why criticize if you are not paying taxes

Whenever there is a price hike, a new budget or levy of a new tax, the media goes to streets and seeks comments from the “public and ordinary men.” And everyone is seen being highly critical of any such decision. The other day I was attending a marriage and happened to be sitting with a man I had never known before. Just to beat the boredom, I started a conversation with him. And obviously, slowly and gradually our conversation focused on the soaring prices and new taxes. And we seemed to be sharing the same view point, as do the people on the streets.

At one point I asked him as to what was his business or employment, to which he explained his business to me in quite details and he seemed to be making lot of money out of it. AS we were discussing taxes before, I abruptly asked whether he paid his taxes dutifully or not. Well to this, an “ahmm” thing followed and then he tried to explain to me that since the government was not providing the business community their due, it was difficult for the business community to pay their dues to the government in full.

I was rather taken aback, or should I say I shouldn’t have been taken aback as it is no secret now that a very few of those who owe meaningful taxes to the government do not pay it. They find loopholes in the system to dodge the government policies or simply bribe the taxmen to avoid paying taxes in full. The same goes for majority of small business men as well, the constituents of “street people.” When asking for their comments, the reporters should also ask them about them paying the taxes or otherwise.

I think except for those whose salaries are documented, that is to say the government employees, semi-government employees or employees of multi-national companies, a vast majority escapes taxes on one plea or the other. In other developing countries, no one can even think for a fraction of second to skip or dodge the taxmen and almost everyone fulfils one’s moral obligation towards taxpaying.

What happens to our taxes and how these are squandered by the lavish government officials is a separate issue, for which the tax payers must raise their voice and concern (although nothing would come out of it), but not paying taxes is unthinkable in any respectful society. No one has the right to protest if he is not paying taxes due to him. We have to start from us to change rather than waiting for the top to change. Having done that, we should constitute consumer committees, as is done in most of the countries, to apply checks on unprecedented self created price hike. I remember having read an article in The Readers’ Digest once where a community boycotted a store for using polythene bags instead of paper bags as they considered it to be environmentally not friendly. No one from the local community visited to store for almost a week till the store management started using the paper bags again.

I know it is easier said than done, but with a hawkish media in place, I think the consumers can make the difference to alleviate their sufferings at the hands of business community or government policies. At the same time, while paying our taxes, we should challenge the government for its unfriendly decisions and ask it to explain the rightful or otherwise use of the tax payers’ money and seek justice. Other than that no one has a right to criticize if not paying taxes.

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