Will a proposed law initiated by the Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan for the corporate sector will spur business activities in the country or not is yet to be seen. However, the government must act in time to salvage the sagging economy. According to Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, the law will prove to be beneficial not only for the commission and the stakeholders but also for the national economy. Regardless to his statement, the areas of problems are visible like a daylight, but the government is unable to resolve any of it, showing its inability and incapacity to take even the first in the right direction. The laws like right to information are there but official domain is still foreign to the ordinary businessmen. The laws should be simple, clear and transparent, but the government institutions supposed to regulate business, trade and economy allegedly work as secret cartels and the laws are enacted in a language which authorizes the government officials to interpret them according to their own state of mind.
No doubt the country achieved a 4.24 percent growth in 2015, which is the highest in seven years. Unofficial figures indicate the same turnaround during 2016, still less than five percent. Only around two and half years are left for the present government to convert its promises into reality. People have high hopes on the present government that it will deliver, but load shedding is continuing, exports are falling and law and order is still a dream. The country needs structural reforms and revision of laws to facilitate the business community. Laws should be enacted to minimize the interference of officials in the regulation of the businesses. The past experience shows that the laws made in good intentions are also misused by the authorities for the vested interests. That is the reason Pakistan has the worst place in the index of corrupt countries of the world.
Dar stressed the need for a constant review of corporate laws in view of the best international practices. But the officials, despite drawing hefty salaries and perks, are apparently reluctant to do their official duties. It is a tradition in the country that no one questions the performance of the senior officials once they are deployed on a particular seat. Only political affiliation and social relations should not be the qualifications for the officials to stay on their posts. They live luxurious lives at the cost of the taxpayers money, but remain least concerned with the plight of the business community. Unless a non-political set up is established, even a good law will not bring any positive change in the economy.
