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How will the Budget
2002-2003 affect the common man?
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Your
Opinions
Our budget is presented purely based on guesswork. No realistic approach is
applied. In our Budget, we never have a vision, mission and, therefore, no
tangible and meaningful outcome is likely to happen. All is a figure juggling
and honestly nothing else. The
affect of this budget upon the common Pakistani would obviously be in the form
of more miseries and sufferings as usual.
N.M. ABBASI
LUSAKA/ZAMBIA
This is a
wonderful budget and the Government needs to be praised for such a far-sighted,
stimulating and action oriented budget, full of steps for the welfare of
public at large. In fact I
would go to the extent of saying that such a pro-poor and visionary budget has
never before been presented in the history of Pakistan.
Aamir
Ontario, Canada
There
is no relief for common man in this budget.
Waqas
Rehman
Edmond, UK
Budget is good and balanced but we should be sincere with nation and must pay
our taxes honestly.
Government must
improve medical and civic facilities to the people. Government must inform the
nation that how these elected members from the grass root level are doing and
what is their future.
Wasim Ahmad
I
am focusing on simpler math based deductions.
Pakistan's proposed budget for 2002-2003 has an outlay of about US$ 12 billion,
a defense budget of US$ 2.5 billion and an allocation for education of US$ 0,036
billion (Rs. 2.6 billion) or 0.3% of proposed outlays.
During 2001-2002 GoP was able to collect only US$ 6.9 in revenues so a
projection of US$ 12 for 2002-2003 is a wish list unlikely to be fulfilled,
specially if President Musharraf continues to deploy troops across LoC and IB to
counter India's similar deployments.
What's the significance of Rs. 2.6 billion for education to common man?
Considering that close to 70% Pakistanis are illiterate and others deserve to be
educated so that they can learn marketable skills necessary to generate wealth a
government with truly common man's interests at heart should be focusing on
education. In case of current
budget government is allocating Rs. 26 per year or about Rs. 2 per month for
education of 100 million who needs to be empowered with marketable skills to
generate wealth.
A
nation state’s continued survival requires that present generation accepts the
responsibility to prepare next two generations, age 16 - 30 and under 16 year to
take over running of government when current generation expires.
Assuming
that the task of educating 80 of 100 million Pakistanis over age 16 at this
stage of Pakistan's development is an unrealistic goal we should conclude that
only about 20 million under 16 may benefit from Rs. 2.6 billion educational
budget. That means the GoP is providing about US$ 0.17 (Rs. 10) per child per
month for education of 16 and younger while spending an equivalent of US$ 5,000
for every soldier currently in army.
Now, I will leave it to Einstein amongst chand-tara Jihadis and their
sympathizers to figure out how bright a future for Pakistan is planned by
General Sahib.
Kishan Bhatia, Ph.D.
Katy, TX USA
This happens every year, if still people of Pakistan wouldn't give the income
tax directly, then these kinds of indirect taxes would be forever for a common
man.
Noman
Hussain
Toronto, Canada
The budgets are made for rich people. Even in countries like the U.S., it
benefits the elite. Similarly, in a country like Pakistan with secular system,
everything is meant for rich.
The
indigent people were/are/will be crushed. Only the rich need more and more. This
is the summary of the budget.
Khalid Butt
MDNew
York, USA
Perhaps so far poor Pakistanis haven't seen any budget giving them the relief. The new budget is just another way of playing usual tricks with them. A common man is not interested in economic terms like "revenue", "deficit" and "GDP & GNP". They need direct satisfaction, tell them the petrol price has dropped to Rs. 25, flour price has decreased by 20% and cooking oil is now more cheaper than before. All the rest is just ways of making the nation foolish.
Syed
Ali Raza
Lahore
As
remarked by some politician there is not any need to announce annual budget
because government is in habit of announcing monthly budgets. The budget makes
the basket of household goods expensive.
I as a
member of middle class household pray that may I see a time when the architects
of budget are forced to live upon their salaries only. The extra benefits like
free petrol, free phone calls, subsidised electricity bills or no bills at all,
free medical and posh accommodation funded by tax money are all curtailed by a
presidential order under some kind of PCO.
Only then
they will realize how the common man is affected by the price hikes. It has
become a habit of all Finance Ministers to comment that the budget will not
affect the common man. It is perhaps a rhetoric only. How can they feel the
plight of a poor worker when they are not challenged by everyday expenses.
A middle
class household spends Rs.5000 on utility bills, at least Rs. 5000 on schooling
of children, Rs. 5000 on transportation. What they can curtail is only the food.
So our government has levied 15% sales tax on edible oil. I can safely say that
80% per cent of Pakistanis experience nightmares instead of sweet dreams. Thanks
to annual budget.
Zarqa
Mufti
Lahore
For a poor country like
Pakistan the budget is fine. But, I am surprised that the current budget did not
show that whether it is long-term budget or short-term budget. It did not show
clearly the future planning of the Government.
Noman Ahmad
Lahore, Pakistan
Perhaps so far poor Pakistanis haven't seen any budget giving them the relief
from the worst sort of economic crisis and the current budget for the financial
year 2002-03 announced recently. The new budget is just another way of playing
same tricks with them.
SYED ALI RAZA
LAHORE
This is a poor man’s Budget to eliminate him from this part of the world.
Fayyaz
Lahore