Sir, A state exists to serve citizens, protect their lives and invest in upgrading infrastructure, while keeping pace with technological advances. A state levies taxes on income to provide these services to citizens through institutions, funded by the taxpayers. A country cannot survive if its economics is lopsided. Our salary/ pension budget for essential state institutions consumes almost 80% of its total revenues, after paying outstanding loan liabilities. The mandatory constitutional and moral obligations of a state, as elaborated by Quaid-e-Azam on 11 August 1947, was that Pakistan will be a modern democratic welfare state. In 2008-2009 the total salary and pension bill consumed almost 24% of total revenues, when former PM Shaukat Aziz made phenomenal increases in salaries and pensions of all state employees and shifted Defense Services Pension from Defense Budget to Civil Budget. This increase consumed almost 43% of total collected revenues, which have not increased proportionally, with successive amnesty schemes, making it more critical. If this anomaly is not rationalized, then the Salary and Pension Bill will exceed total revenues over next 5 to 7 years according to independent economists and actuaries. There is absolutely no justification for taking loans to pay fabulous salaries to state employees, with post retirement pensions and perks that this country cannot afford. Pension is paid as sustenance allowance. As if this was not enough, post retirement re-employment in SOEs, deprives more qualified youth of job opportunities. Can anybody justify the choice of CEO’s appointed in WAPDA, PTA, CAA, PIA etc. when there are more qualified citizens available? This has only added to Brain Drain, while the SOEs themselves have gone from bad to worse. Prudence demands that sanity and merit must prevail. The priority should be welfare and development of human resources and a balanced budget.
Malik Tariq Ali
Lahore
