IMF is the enemy of Pakistan's economy. Why should we allow luxurious and not needed imports? Why should we devalue our currency? The US Administration through its organs IMF and World Bank are working on destroying Pakistan's economy so that we have to follow their dictations of recognizing Israel and denuclearizing ourselves. These conditionalities are being put to move us further towards the brink of economic disaster.
Structural reforms are being done at IMF behest since the nineties and every time we are told to do more reforms.
The western capitalistic economic system cannot deliver our people or people anywhere from their poverty. They just fill the pockets of the rich and make the poor work like slaves.
Socialism has also failed because it puts too much burden on the state for meeting all the needs of the people.
Only Islamic Economic System can solve the problems of Pakistan and we need structural reforms for that. There are people who have knowledge about Islamic Economic and Political Systems who can guide the government in the right direction.
IMF is not the problem. Bangladesh and India have borrowed from the IMF and look at their success stories?
The problem is that Pakistan does not follow the guidelines of the IMF programs.
Pakistan is a beggar that wants to be a chooser.
Instead of taxing the rich, who are ruling elite, it offloads the burden into sales tax for the poor. Instead of liberalization of the markets, it allows sugar mills, run by the ruling elite, to cartelize the market. It even gives these sugar mills subsidies, but will enforce price regulation governed by those very same sugar mill owners.
Instead of taxing real estate, it allows it to thrive as major component of the informal economy. Many people hold plots, houses, flats without any government oversight into the value. No taxes are paid here. So people have a ton of money, you'll see many driving new Landcruisers which I can't afford in the US.
Doctors, lawyers, salons, other businesses don't pay taxes. Retailers are the worst. They cause your imports and smuggling to surge, but don't pay any taxes. Any government that tries to tax them, faces shutter-down strikes that inflate prices for common man, who punishes to government with his vote.
Agriculture producers and wholesalers don't pay taxes at all. Last time FBR tried to tax them, they were stopped by these landlords sitting in the parliament in all parties.
So no one pays taxes and no one can make anyone pay taxes. Why blame the IMF?
IMF tells you to stop overvaluing your currency because you waste billions of dollars doing that and get nothing in exchange except a decrease in exports, now more expensive, and an increase in imports, now much cheaper as result of currency being overvalued. Your current account deficit widens forcing you back to the IMF.
Furthermore, Pakistan chooses not to grow exports because productivity is not liked by the lazy population.
You guys prefer to invest your money on the most unproductive sector, real estate.
IMF tells you to privatize state-owned enterprises like PIA. Yet Pakistan keeps them running despite PIA having a small fleet of 30 aircraft, but with many employees, possibly over 11,000. The airline loses half a billion a year, is bankrupt, and cannot pay debt without government borrowing loans.
Everything IMF tells you to do is good for you, but Pakistan refuses to listen and continues to borrow.
