Growing tax and inflation
For a long time, the government and the opposition had been hearing contradictory claims about the spread of corruption in the country. Now milk and water have become such that Transparency International has released the Corruption Perceptions Index (CPI) of 180 countries, according to which Pakistan went up 16 places in corruption last year. It was ranked 140th out of 180 countries. In 2021, Pakistan's CPI score was 28 while in 2020, CPI score was 31 and in terms of corruption, Pakistan was ranked 124th out of 180 countries. Transparency International's Corruption Perceptions Index, on a scale ranging from zero to 100, shows how corrupt a country is in the eyes of business people and experts in various professions. The higher the score of a country, the more transparent it is. This definition of the Corruption Perception Index is very clear and is taken in the same context all over the world, but dear ministers who have not been able to reduce corruption, want to change the concept of CPI. The decline in the CPI score is certainly a major blow to the Prime Minister's statement of transparency. Eliminating corruption has been at the top of the current government's agenda, but what the globally recognized indicators of transparency are showing is worrying.
According to the international report, Pakistan is facing more problems of corruption than in the past and in corruption Pakistan is on par with Mauritania, Myanmar and Uzbekistan. If we look at other countries in the region on this score, Pakistan lags behind all other countries in South Asia except Bangladesh. India's Corruption Perception Index is 40, Sri Lanka's is 37 and Nepal's is 33. The perception of corruption is also a major obstacle to a country's economy. In particular, the element of corruption is highly resistant in foreign investment decisions, so it should be borne in mind that the declining CPI score year after year will continue to frustrate our dreams of industrial development. If an outsider has to invest, every conscious person will prefer transparency over corruption. Our rulers do not seem ready to accept this fact even in the fourth year of their rule. If mistakes, shortcomings or failures are realized, then the situation of reform can be expected to arise, but if no one admits and is accustomed to work with tricks, then where is the scope for the beginning of reform? There is no doubt that corruption is the greatest enemy of society, but it is a termite that hollows out the existence of the state.
Imran Khan came to the government with the same vision and he showed the people the bright picture of the future in which the eradication of corruption was the main component but what did the government do to eradicate the corruption in the system? What can the government offer in response to this question except some incomplete cases and transfer of a few registered officers? Which corrupt person was punished? Bargaining for looted wealth is not a great achievement. The job of the state is not to deal with a traitor, it is to prevent crime and for this, instructive scenarios are sometimes necessary. This is how a complete eradication of corruption is possible. There is a lot for the rulers to think in this report!
On the other hand, the Governor SBP, while announcing the new monetary policy, said that due to the decline in agricultural production, the prices of food items have gone up and inflation is expected to rise in the next few months. This view of his seems to contradict the government's view on inflation. The government seems to be appeasing the people by raising hopes of reduction in inflation and claiming increase in agricultural production, but the situation can be improved if the government acts realistically on inflation and makes sustained efforts to solve the problems. The SBP has also cited higher middleman profits as a cause of inflation. This identification is not new, but the government has not taken any steps to address this issue. The government can fix market rates and commissions etc. so that neither the farmer nor the consumer is exploited, but the middle man controls the market and it is not an easy task to make its unjust profits subject to any rules and regulations. ۔ Direct link between producer and user can be helpful in this regard. The government needs to pay attention to this model of food marketing. This will also create new jobs in the food production sector and in the ancillary sectors of the direct markets.
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