Loud Thinking

On the one side the government is advising public, to give more and more financial sacrifices; and on the other hand, it is obliging favourites, as if milk and honey has started flowing in Pakistan, under PMLN : Loot more Pakistan..!

Baber Ayaz appointed media consultant at CAA (Jang Report).

As they say eat more sugarcane. I will say LOOT more Pakistan.

This man will get Rs.5 lac+perks and govt wants us to pay more, every now and then, on utilities and every second item.

Mr. Ishaq Dar told us Rs. 22 crore BMW was for those Arab friends who gave us Rs.150billion. Please also tell us what this man gave to the nation for which he deserves Rs.60 lac/annum + perks???

Overcoming poverty is not a gesture of charity.

It is an act of justice.

It is the protection of a fundamental human right, the right to dignity and a decent life.

While poverty persists, there is no true freedom.

The steps that are needed from the developed nations are clear.

The first is ensuring trade justice.

I have said before that trade justice is a truly meaningful way for the developed countries to show commitment to bringing about an end to global poverty.

The second is an end to the debt crisis for the poor countries.

The third is to deliver much more aid and make sure it is of the highest quality. …

Nelson Mandela, Johannesburg, South Africa, 2 July 2005

“The things you take for granted, someone else is praying for.”

— Author Unknown

“Obstacles don’t have to stop you. If you run into a wall, don’t turn around and give up. Figure out how to climb it, go through it or work around it.”

—Michael Jordan (born 1963);
Retired Professional Basketball Player, Businessman

July 08, 2014

Before You Sign on the Dotted Line, Know What You’re Committing To

When negotiating, be very careful about the commitments you make. Never agree to something just to avoid walking away empty-handed. But if you do have some good options on the table, assess each one thoroughly. Are these options operational and sufficient? The timeline, terms, and conditions need to be realistic and detailed enough that the agreement can actually be implemented. Do you have the authority to commit to these options? Think through whether you can sign on the dotted line — or if you need someone else’s approval. Finally, ask if you’ll be able to sell these options internally to key stakeholders. You should test the solutions with the right people — your boss, upper management, your team — before making any promises. Leave committing to anything until the very end.

Adapted from the HBR Guide to Negotiating by Jeff Weiss.

Fond of tourism and scenic beauty ? Must click this link:- http://www.dawn.com/news/1116761/travel-pakistan-visiting-shogran-in-winter

LAST FIFA World Cup winning record of the 4 semi-finalists of the 2014 World Cup.

Argentina, led by Diego Maradona won last time in 1986, a 3–2 victory over West Germany. Their most recent World Cup final was in 1990, which they lost, 1–0, to Germany by a much disputed penalty. Now they have a chance after 28 years.

Brazil last won the World Cup in 2002. In the final hosted in Japan, Brazil beat Germany by a 2-0 margin to win the coveted trophy. Now they have a chance after 14 years.

Germany has won the World cup three times. The first time in 1954 against Uruguay, then in 1974 against the Netherlands and finally in 1990 to beat Argentina. Now they have a chance after 24 years.

The Dutch hold the record for playing the most World Cup finals without ever winning the tournament.
They finished second in the1974, 1978, and 2010 World Cups, losing to West Germany,Argentina, and Spain respectively. Now they can make another try to win the World Cup after 14 years.

How to control prices in the holy month of Ramzan..?

(It seems these public welfare suggestions have fallen on deaf ears of ALL the provincial governments).

All the provincial and district governments must ensure that the government approved rate lists of each and every item, must be BOLDLY and PROMINENTLY displayed at each and every shop, Khokha and Rehri; and must also be advertised daily in the media.

Although, this will NOT completely eliminate the overcharging and extra profiteering by the sellers; yet, it will be a big deterrent and relief in over charging and to a large extent, will also be very effective against the hoarders, as well. Basically, the hoarders are responsible for the Ramzan price hikes.

Moreover, telephone numbers of the concerned officials of the district administration, should also be printed on the price lists, in bold font, for the public to register their complaints for swift action, against the sellers who are found to be overcharging, during the Holy month of Ramzan.

Secondly, a public volunteers team should also be formed, to assist the local administration, in enforcing sale of items on government’s fixed rates.

Thirdly, to instil fear of law into the hearts of the overcharging persons, such unscrupulous persons, must immediately be jailed (without bail) for 30 days, after same day court trials.

In this regard, All MNA’s, MPA’s, retired government servants of grade 20 and above and ALL serving government servants of grade 17 and above, should be vested with the powers of the 1st Class magistrate to speed up the same day trial process.

May be the winner of the ARG vs NED be also the winner of the final match..!

My comments on the below mentioned news:

If I were the PM, would first replace the finance minister before giving the go ahead for any mini budget.

Unfortunately, this FM has neither the vision nor the will to act upon any out of box thinking.

He can only think the easy way of taking loans (on harsh conditions) and increasing the burden on general public (which pays the power and gas bills honestly) by increasing the utility charges one way or the other.

Our present government has also miserably failed in curbing the massive corruption in the country, which has the magnitude almost equal to the budgeted expenses of the year 14-15 i.e., Rs.4 trillion; which also means that the size of our black economy is equal to the white economy. And perhaps this size of corruption (Rs.12 billion/day according to the former Chairman NAB) may not be prevailing in any other country, where white and black economies are almost equal; and still the government is still looking the other way….but then the question arises why the government is silent over this massive corruption, tax evasion and utilities theft; which is eating away the very foundations of the country’s economy?

As such, the PMLN’s government which came into power on the promises of rooting out the corruption and bringing back the looted money, is giving an incentive to the dishonest and punishment to the honest citizens by increasing taxes and rates and not cracking down on the dishonest people.

News item of Express Tribune:

$6.7b IMF bailout: If needed, Pakistan may introduce mini-budget

By Shahbaz RanaPublished: July 8, 2014

Loan conditions: Rs1.4tr is IMF’s budget deficit target for Pakistan for 2014-15. PHOTO: FILE

ISLAMABAD:
In a bid to keep the $6.7 billion bailout programme afloat, Pakistan has assured the International Monetary Fund (IMF) that it will introduce a mini-budget and slow down development spending to create a cushion of Rs145 billion in case problems arise in delivering the budget deficit target.
“To help ensure programme targets can be met, the [Pakistani] authorities have identified several contingency measures that can be implemented if the expected fiscal adjustment begins to fall short of the objective,” an IMF report revealed on Monday.

The objective IMF mentions is keeping the budget deficit – the gap between income and expenses – equal to 4.8% of the country’s GDP or Rs1.398 trillion. This is lower by 0.1% of the GDP – or Rs32 billion – than the target approved by Parliament.
According to the written assurance, the government, on the revenue side, plans to eliminate statutory regulatory orders (SROs) in fiscal year 2015-16 if tax revenues fall below the level envisaged in the programme. For 2015-16, the government has already given an SRO-elimination plan that promises slating the orders equivalent to 0.3% of the GDP or Rs81 billion at the current size of the economy.
These Rs81 billion measures will be over and above the Rs231 billion net new taxes that the government imposed from July 1. For the new fiscal, the government has set a Rs2.81 trillion tax target that many, including the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR), privately admits is unachievable.

“The chances of a mini-budget are high as FBR cannot collect more than Rs2.6 to Rs2.65 trillion in this fiscal year … this is what I told the finance minister before the finalisation of the budget,” said Dr Ashfaque Hasan Khan, a renowned economist and member of the Economic Advisory Council.
“On the expenditure side, we will again reduce expenditure allocations in the first nine months of the year compared to the budget to create a reserve against any shortfall,” Finance Minister Ishaq Dar assured the IMF. This policy is consistent with a contingency plan that the government adopted in the previous financial year, which led to a severe under-spending on the development side.
Pakistan has assured that these measures could yield savings amounting to 0.5% of the GDP or Rs145 billion. “In any case, we stand ready to take compensatory measures as needed, including adjustment on the revenue side, to reach our fiscal target,” the finance minister told the IMF.
According to independent economists, such policies are anti-growth and will adversely affect the current fiscal year’s economic growth rate target of 5.1%. Apparently, the IMF doesn’t trust the government will achieve this target. “For FY2014-15, the economy is forecast to expand by around 4%,” the international lender noted in its report.
New surcharge
Pakistan has also assured the IMF that it will slap a new surcharge on electricity consumers to recover the circular debt if the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) rejected its plan to recover circular debt from consumers by increasing tariffs. The report puts the total circular debt at Rs500 billion.
New conditions
The IMF has imposed four new conditions on Pakistan after the government showed reluctance in reforming some of the critical areas. These conditions, known as structural benchmarks, are steps to give real operational independence to the State Bank (SBP).
The second new condition is filling vacancies in the NEPRA board by end of current month. The third condition is offering minority shares in UBL and PPL to domestic and international investors, which has been met.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 8th, 2014.