Click Here to Visit our Sponsor
The Viewer's
Forum is a platform where you can share your views with others on
any particular current issue.
Note
The views in this forum are from the
contributors' perspectives.
The Editor does not necessarily subscribe to the views.
Previous
issue
What
is your opinion about the Budget 1999-2000?
Your Opinion
- I don't know anything about
Pakistani budget, but I would like to say to all
Pakistanis, that why do you try to compare your every
thing with India? Don't you have anything to think of
your own? Come out of the Kashmir issue illusion. I feel
sorry for those Pakistanis who still believe in spending
more on the defence. Do you know that every Pakistani is
paying three times more taxes for defence, than an Indian
and as yet don't have half of the conventional and
nuclear arsenal. And you still say that the Indian
Muslims are living in a fool's paradise. If you think and
see you will come to know how Muslims in India are
living: they are far richer, with superior education and
living standards and are big Indian patriots. Do you know
all that respectable imams in India call Pakistan a
betrayer? Try to educate your people first. Spending on
defence and fundamentalist schools will give everybody a
gun but nothing to eat. Then Pakistan will be another
Afghanistan.
Akash Mahadevan
Australia/India
- This forum seems to be
turning into a CNN message board where scared Indians
come uninvited and continue to bark against Pakistan
tirelessly. Come on guys, we are open-minded but it does
not mean that you just barge in and open your gutter like
mouth. Most of the people seem to be disappointed with
Pakistan, well, what are you doing about it? Most of you
are sitting abroad and just showing your grim faces. You
want to turn this nation around? Well it is time. Come
one in and lets get rid of every Sharif, Bhutto, Doltana,
Mengal and others who had been sucking the blood of this
nation.
If you keep sitting in your cosy living room and typing
your pathetic analysis, nothing will change. The only way
to bring this nation up is to concentrate on education,
industrial development and health. Forget Kashmir, forget
India, forget China, and all others who we thought were
our friends.
Work together and we will go forward. INSHALLAH.
Amjad Hasnie
USA
- Pakistanis and Indians are
brothers. We should leave in peace. By spending our
precious resources towards wars, we are not accomplishing
much towards improving the lot of citizens in either
country. They have suffered enough. Eradicting hunger and
illiteracy should be the main focus. United we stand,
divided we fall! The English ruled and ruined us for
centuries and left us in a mess.
Brij Lamba
India
- I hope that Pakistan allots
100% of its budget to defence. That way, it will collapse
sooner and go broke. I encourage all Muslims of Pakistan
to pledge that they will go hungry for a week, nay
several months and spend the money for mirages :-)
Pakistan is no match for Hindustan. About 80% of Pakistan
is desert and the rest is populated by mentally diseased
people. In the modern age, it does not pay to follow the
creed of a camel driving child abuser.
Namrata Bose
India
- It is with great sadness
that I see more money allocated for killing. Islam is a
generous religion. Do not let our leaders kill in the
name of Islam. Yes, we have been taught to disrespect
other religions. Is it because we don't understand our
own religion?
Dr Itheshamuddin
USA
- I know the importance of
military spending but how much can we spend? Pakistan can
not evolve as a country like this; we first need to
establish a strong agriculture. After this, establish a
strong industry.
Usman
USA
- After reading these
messages I am happy to find that there are indeed some
sensible people in Pakistan who realise how messed up
that country is. Friends, it is indeed time you guys
realised how backward Pakistan is; so backward that you
have to benchmark your progress against India (and yet be
embarrassed since you have not achieved anything).
Religion is great but if that religious budget fails to
feed millions of hungry people in Pakistan then sorry,
may be the thinking is not right. Oh yeah, sorry about
the Kargil issue. India did what it had to do; by the
way, if you guys have been keeping abreast of the news
you must have been pretty enthralled to see how the
Indian nation came together in this moment of crisis.
Everyone from the army jawans, to politicians to
sportsmen to film stars and finally non-resident Indians
such as myself came together to help our country. Sorry
Pakistani friends, you guys have a long long way to go,
and as long as you remain diverted to the Kashmir issue,
it is indeed going to be a major hindrance in your
country's progress. India on the other hand is romping
ahead, the information technology boom has just started
and India will go places in coming years.
Advani
USA
- Frankly speaking I don't
have a right to comment on your budget. But after reading
the opinions in this forum I thought of adding mine too.
If intellectuals behave like fanatics the world will go
to the dogs. And the same is happening down there.
Politicians with their vested interests are escalating
the tensions and we are obliging. One of my friends
quoted, "A strong military presence makes a country
strong" ..dear, look at Japan. But no you’ll
say look at North Korea right? Well ..the best I can do
is wish Pakistan all the best.
Dhanush
India
- Under the present
circumstances the budget is quite balanced; doing away
with octroi was a good step. However, there should be no
mini-budgets coming up, tax evasion should be controlled
and industrialists and foreign investors should be given
more incentives. Pakistan has the potential of
progressing much more rapidly than its neighbours
especially India, which cannot progress because of its
caste system.
A Baig
(Hyderabad Deccan) Canada
- You people fight in the
name of Religion. Every religion preaches PEACE. The
atrocities committed by you people in the name of God
will not even be tolerated by ALLAH. There were comments
saying that Indian Muslims are living in a fool's
Paradise. They were stupid comments! India cricket
captain is a Muslim and that itself speaks of the freedom
Muslims have in India. The man behind India's nuclear
technology is a Muslim (Dr.Abdul Kalam). What is the
outcome of a war? Nothing more than deaths. More than
1000 people have lost their lives and just think about
their families. India is a country that loves peace.
It’s just because of our neighbours (Pakistan &
China), we have to invest so much in defence (of course
it’s only a small fraction of the GDP for India
unlike Pakistan). Look at the number of Asians working
abroad in developed countries. Most of the Indians are in
white-collar jobs whereas not many of your guys are in
such good positions. This is because of the quality of
education. The quality of education is very good in India
and a lot of money is pumped for the purpose. If you keep
allocating your money to defence, you’re heading
towards doom. Think about educating your people and
spending money usefully. Pakistan can never challenge
India. India’s economy is good, literacy rate is
improving; it is the highest producer of wheat and milk;
leading exporter of textiles, software, etc. So
let’s drop our guns and stay united for a better
life filled with peace. As a Muslim I am happy to be in
India (my motherland) which has given me enough freedom.
Sultan Ibrahim
Germany
- This is with reference to
Najib Qureshi from India: Oh yes, ill-treatment of
Sindhis, Mohajirs, Balochs in Pakistan. Well my Indian
friend, what about Golden Temple and Sikhs? You call that
nourishment of a minority and an ethnic group? The Sikhs
were almost driven to extinction. Sure Muslims in India
are in a bigger number than most Muslim countries, which
is why India is satisfied with just burning and
destroying one or two mosques a year otherwise it would
probably erase all mosques and Muslims over night. And
the poor folks in Assam; what about their plight? The
killing of Christians by Hindus and burning of churches
in India made headlines world over not long ago.
India is ten times bigger than Pakistan. Sure it is. USA
is many times bigger than Vietnam and Japan and yet they
competed militarily and economically. What is silly it
seems is your argument. It is not your fault, you are
just trying to keep alive the centuries old tradition of
kissing up to the masters and trying to get some favours.
A character of your nation! That is what helped Mughals
conquer India and then the British crept in. Now it is
trying keep a very fragile unity together on account of
illusions guys like you have. Thanks for the suggestion
of improving the quality of life of Pakistani people. May
I suggest that India do something about generations born,
raised and perishing on the streets of cities like
Calcutta and Bombay? And lower the UNICEF numbers on
Indian children having one meal a day and going to bed
hungry!
Wasim Ali
USA
- The Budget of 1999-2000 is
a magic of figures with hypocrisy.
Mohammad Asif
Canada
- So you paid France for the
planes. Well they are not here for another 10 years.
After 10 years you will get some rice and wheat. No
planes. A country with no money like yours is buying
weapons and not getting them and of course they will be
out of date. You don't expect France to give you new
technology do you? Do you think it is really worth it?
It is hard to imagine how your country is holding still
without any money. Must be the "brothers" from
OIC. They have a fun time abusing you. Hard to see that
fact?
Jai
USA/India
- This time Pakistan's budget
is superb. India is spending more than 70% of its
national income on Military and Security, so why are
Pakistanis being are criticised by the Indians? That is
right, the standard of living is very poor in both the
countries. But this budget has nothing to do with Kashmir
problem. Some people are linking Pakistan's budget with
Kashmir issue/Indian animosity. The Indians are very
proud of their strong and shining economy. If Pakistan is
getting $1 dollar from the IMF then India is getting $100
dollars. The life standard of a simple Pakistani is
better than that of an Indian diplomat.
Nadeem Ahmed
Austria
- What budget? You Pakistanis
are not having food and shelter and you want to fight
India! If you do that you won't have people also!
Actually that is better. Why don't you die rather than
suffer without food and water.
Shiva
India
- The Budget is screwed up as
ever. Our budget seems so obsessed with ballistic
missiles, nuclear technology and armaments. Can we have a
budget that is people-friendly? Our economy is so
dependent on foreign trade that the moment we have
sanctions we screw totally. I think the money the
government has spent on defence should have been spent on
some development programs; that would have made Pakistan
a lot better. All we care is Kashmir, India. Get over
with it man! It’s just a dream though!
Shezad
Bangkok
- Please spend money on the
social welfare of people; like clean water, housing,
health care, education, natural resources, and
improvement in the conditions of the people! Not making
atomic bombs and warfare weapons. How ridiculous it is to
spend on such mundane things. People is what counts not
military equipment.
Krista M Forbes
Australia
- This is not a budget! It is
"Bidhat". The minister should eat custard and
live in Manchester, because he and his partners all are
looting the country. "BiBi come back and save
Pakistan.
Rizwan Haider
Pakistan
- Who cares about the budget?
As long as we get paid properly and regularly, nothing
else matters. I guess rather than discussing about the
budget, we should promote terrorism, it is a lucrative
business today. Maybe it will revive the Pakistani
economy! A terrorist country for hire....
Haider Mian
Pakistan
- Today, in an attempt to try
and 'match' India (a country ten times bigger), Pakistan
has been spending 85% of its budget on just two things:
servicing foreign loans and keeping the corrupt
power-hungry people happy. The result is evident in just
one example: India's foreign exchange reserves are over
$35 billion, while Pakistan's are around $1 billion only!
Z.A.Bhutto had once said that if needed, Pakistanis will
eat grass, but will go on with their military
extravaganza. Well, it seems that soon Pakistanis will be
eating grass! Some opinions expressed in this message
board assert Pakistan as a Muslim country. Some urge
Pakistan to befriend only Muslims and eliminate 'kafirs'.
Well, what makes a country or an individual Islamic or
Christian or Hindu? Good deeds. Pakistanis cannot claim
to be Islamic just because they 'say' they are Muslims.
The way Pakistan has been promoting fanaticism and
terrorism is unIslamic. Moreover, there are more Muslims
in India than in any other country in the world (maybe
Indonesia is an exception).
Najib Qureshi
India
- To my dear friends Raju
from the US and Rajju from India:
Brother Raju: Sorry, I do not find Opinion 6 talking
about 'Indian brothers'.
You should learn to read opinions with more attention. It
might be a good idea to talk to your Muslim friends (it
would be very surprising if you have any friends).
I’m sure they will be able to teach you some manners
and writing etiquette. Brother Rajju: I am ashamed to
even call you a brother. With the kind of language of
profanity you have used in the letter, you have insulted
the entire nation of India, though I am sure India has
many good people too. Through your letter you have proven
to be illiterate and ignorant. Please get some education,
at least up to grade 10. I wonder if this letter was sent
to an Indian newspaper from a Pakistani reader, it would
have been published. We have proven to be democratic.
Even though I think that The Jang should put censor on
profane letters. Pakistan does not have any problem with
the people of India; it's the Indian government that we
have problem with. I hope both of you brothers control
your language in future letters.
Jamil Ahmad
Canada
- We must open our eyes and
stop living in a fool’s paradise. We can not afford
such extravagant defence budgets to match India. We
should abandon our misadventures in Kashmir and focus on
a budget for the economic improvement of the masses.
Jabed Hussain
USA
- It is apparent that under
such troublesome circumstances budgeting is very
difficult for any government. However, I am confident
that this budget will play a greater part in the
development of Pakistan. If a person thinks that this
budget is full of jokes then he’d rather give
suggestions not spew criticism. As far as India and
Pakistan are concerned, there is no match between them,
since Pakistan is actualised by God to transform the
world.
Khalid
Pakistan
- The various governments of
Pakistan have been playing this "drama" of
presenting budget every year. But any budget that does
not contribute to the welfare of the masses is nothing
but a sham. During the past fifty-one years every
government has added more to the problems of the common
citizen of Pakistan. These governments have not only
bankrupted the country, but has also buried the nation
under foreign and internal debt, which she will never be
able to get out of.
Will somebody ask Nawaz Sharif to justify a monthly
expenditure of forty five million rupees for the prime
minister’s secretariat? Why he has to travel outside
the country every so often, what has he achieved for the
country from these unwarranted travels? Why does he
travel with his family and people who have nothing to do
with any policy matters? Why did Shahbaz Sharif come to
the USA? He is a provincial chief only. Is he running a
parallel government? These are just a few examples of the
misdeeds of these democratically elected leaders of this
country who have betrayed the hopes, aspirations and
trust of the people who elected him. He cannot survive
too long on rhetoric. If he truly wants to be remembered
as a great leader he has to come clean himself in every
aspect of his life. Surrounding himself with tired old
corrupt politicians, like Ghous Ali Shah or the likes of
Qaim Ali Shah and Jam Sadiq Ali (late), (I do realise
both were cohorts of Bhutto and one of them is dead)
shows how sincere he is in his actions. You can go on and
on with all the misdeeds of the leaders of this country.
It is a never-ending tale. It is a tragedy when we cannot
name a single leader in the history of our country who
was sincere when given power or acquired power since the
assassination of Liaqat Ali Khan. Maybe it is the
reflection of the whole society which is called Pakistan.
I just pray to Allah Almighty to have mercy on this
nation of ours.
Amjad Rasool
USA
- I honestly think that the
current budget 1999-2000 is very reasonable. I think in
the current situation that is the best approach. I am
discouraged with the critical remarks people have made on
the budget. They themselves live in a foreign country, do
absolutely nothing for Pakistan and criticise everything-
their own country and their own people. It is a shame
that our beloved Prime Minister Mr. Nawaz Sharif is going
through a very critical time and these people are doing
nothing but having negative thoughts. Long live Pakistan
and long live Beloved Prime Minister his highness Mr.
Nawaz Sharif. This is my very impartial opinion I am just
a former Pakistani who likes to see Pak-American
relationship get stronger and stronger everyday. I think
I am a good example of Muslim.
Maroof H Qurashi
USA
- I only want to answer the
comment made by some Indian named Rajju about Pakistan's
economy. As far as our economy is concerned, it is better
than India’s. Our standard of living is far better
than your beggarly country where people are living far
below the poverty line. Often scenes of sick and
afflicted people are shown on the international media. As
far as the state of our army is concerned, it has given
your 'gallant' army a good lesson in Kargil, which you
Indians will never forget.
Javaid Rana
USA
- I think none of the readers
have even read the budget papers, that is why they give
general statements like good budget, bad budget, must
spend more on defence, etc. Please read the budget in
full and comment: Is it a deficit or surplus budget? How
much is the deficit or surplus -is it healthy? What is
the sector-wise allocation? If deficit what is the
proposed sources of financing? What is the segmental
allocation? Any poverty alleviation programme envisaged
in the budget? What are the inflationary tendencies
gauged from the budget proposals? Lastly, how does it
compare with last year's budget? By doing this you can
improve your knowledge and also give suggestions to the
government.
Nageswaran
India
- This is another juggling of
figures. As usual, the poor will become poorer and the
rich richer. It's simply fooling the nation.
Ghayyur
Pakistan
- Pakistan's economy can only
improve if Pakistan gives up its pursuit of catching up
with India in military might. With both countries in
possession of nuclear weapons capability, parity has been
somewhat restored. Repeated military misadventures and
unjustified increases in military spending have not
benefited the people of Pakistan and have only served to
make the rich and corrupt sections of the ruling
establishment richer, while the masses are duped. In
today's situation neither India nor Pakistan can win in a
war. Any war will obtain a 'lose-lose' outcome.
Maqbool Butt
UK
- India has one of the best
technologies in the world. The recent survey in an
international magazine has shown that India is the second
largest computer software producer in the world in the
English language after USA. No doubt India has acquired
technology from other countries, just like anybody else,
but India has been able to improve and also produce its
own technology. Indian scientists are in great demand all
over the world and India has been exporting its experts.
Indian scientists are forced to go overseas for the
simple reason that India does not have the resources.
India stands as one of the most technologically advanced
countries in the world. Had it not been for the political
infighting and unstable governments, India would have
been one of the most advanced countries in the world.
I request all to concentrate on economic development than
winning war. This will help everyone and make living
easier; not the other way round by increasing budget and
ensuring mutually assured destruction. No country will
respect us until and unless we are economically stronger-
not even nations with common religion.
Bhatt
India
- Yes I seriously think
Pakistan should be concentrating on investing in the
infrastructure rather than in promoting terrorism. I am
an Indian by birth and I am a patriot. But I fail to see
the reason for the hatred that Pakistanis have for the
Indians. Is it only because majority of the Indians is
non-Muslims? Or is it that the common man in Pakistan has
no hatred for the Indian and it’s only the
politicians and the religious order that promotes this?
Believe me when I say, hatred against Pakistan is not on
any Indian agenda, we have our own problems internally,
we have a more global view, hence India is among the
first 3 favourite destinations for foreign investment.
India produces the best software developers in the world.
Indian exports are worth many billions. So why don’t
Pakistani politicians/religious leaders drop this
anti-India campaign and work towards self-betterment,
which would be a great help to India as well?
Navin Balan
India
- I would like to share what
Mr. Rauf Bakhsh Kadri, Chairman Bankers Equity Ltd, had
to say about the budget.
"I would call it a very good budget. Primarily,
there are two reasons: one, I think it is an
expenditure-oriented budget and that too in the right
direction -social action programme and tameer-e watan
programme. Some other measures taken will help generate
economic activity. However, the question is whether the
revenue side will meet its target to achieve these levels
of expenditure as projected. A certain cash-flow savings
from the external debt rescheduling which has taken place
with the multilateral lending agencies and the World
Bank, all this will give room for meeting higher
expenditure projected in this budget. It appears to be a
realistic budget at this point to me."
Sohail Ashraf
Bahrain
- What budget? The budget
which makes poor people poorer? It is no use living in
Pakistan. It’s better to go to India, where at least
we will be safe and live a happily with more than 14
crore Muslims.
Akram
Pakistan
- 1.National Transportation
Program must be reviewed.
2.I don’t get it: On the one hand, the government
has announced taking off the Octroi Posts giving up 19
billion rupees annually, while on the other it has pushed
traders to buy trade certificate of Rs 500 each that
would collect 5 billion rupees a year.
3. Our planners seem to be lacking knowledge or are doing
intentionally such things as increasing the prices of
common use commodities and giving rebates on
entertainment equipment/instruments etc.
4. Taxation must be reviewed. Who pays taxes in Pakistan?
Nobody.
Munir
USA
- The budget was a sham and
the government should concentrate on education and uplift
of the common people rather than spending billions on a
fruitless battle against India.
Imran Ahmed
New Zealand(Pakistan)
- Budget 1999-2000 is just
normal. But I think it's a game of figures. The budget is
acceptable for middle and lower middle classes, but the
supplement budgets expected soon will shuffle all things.
Still we have to see the impact of conflict between India
and Pakistan, which is still disturbing the local budget.
Muhammad Sonain Zia
Pakistan
- Budget will be like this in
Pakistan till it engages fight against us. One of our
Muslim brothers in Australia has said that you contact
Indian Muslims and tell them that they are in a fool's
Paradise. I believe that India is a safer place for
Muslims than Pakistan. You can see the freedom of
expression is also not there. We embrace you as brothers,
but you stab us in the back. If you increase your
military budget the money doesn't reach military fully,
but into unknown pockets. First be stable and then only
think of anything else.
Sreeram
Hindustan
- It is interesting and
saddening to note that a lot of Pakistanis are still
wanting to increase their defence spending. Is it not
enough that Pakistan spends 85% of its budget in
servicing foreign loans (karz) and on defence? And the
idea of trying to beat India militarily or economically
is silly. You are talking about a country TEN TIMES
bigger than Pakistan!
I also OBJECT to the views of some Pakistanis that India
is non-Islamic. What do you mean by 'Islamic'? What about
the ill treatment of Sindhis, Balochis, and Mohajirs? In
fact, India is more Islamic, more Hindu, more Christian
than any other Asian country. There are more Muslims in
India than in any so-called 'Islamic' country. In fact,
the secular and democratic ideals of India have kept it
in one piece in spite of its diversity, while Pakistan
today is HALF its original size (as in 1947)!
May I suggest that Pakistanis must concentrate on
improving the quality of life of the people and spend
less on self-destructive defence extravaganzas. And
trying to compete with India would be like Nepal
competing with China!
Najib Qureshi
India
- It is a budget for
politicians and the bureaucrats not for the country.
Riz Haq
USA
- The budget could have been
people-friendly. The money spent towards atomic bombs and
ballistic missiles could have been spent towards
providing clean water, schools and building
infrastructure for economic development. It is not going
to succeed in reducing dependence on WB and IMF loans. It
could be spent towards eliminating iodine deficiency in
Pakistan.
Military and non-military leaders in India and Pakistan
when talk about bombing of the enemy with the atom bomb,
they are showing their ignorance about dangers to their
own countrymen. The bomb will have tremendous destruction
of life and property located in several miles from the
epicentre. But the wind will carry radioactivity for
thousands of miles in both the countries.
Millions of people exposed to radioactivity will die of
many types of cancer including leukemia and thyroid
cancers for many years after the blast. Thyroid cancer is
worth pointing out because 20 - 40% of people of South
Asia are deficient in iodine even after the introduction
of iodised salt, and their thyroid glands are hungry for
iodine. Such people will pick up radioactive iodine
released from atomic explosion and suffer from thyroid
cancers for years to come. I have treated cases from
Chernobyl accident for many years after the accident.
Get real and be careful you might hurt your own side.
Suman K Mishr MD
USA
- The Budget is a great topic
isn't it? I wonder if it is as great as the last ones.
-Seized Foreign Accounts
-$12 billion in misappropriations
-Mishandling of the Kargil Situation
-Mismanagement of the Sindh Situation
-Selling out the Kashmiri Freedom Fighters
-Sucking the nation dry of its resources
-Broken promises
I don't know about anybody else, but I see a very strong
pattern here. For some reason, the party in the power is
always the so-called "patriot" and the
opposition is always the "traitor". The way I
see it everybody takes turns to brutalise and rape the
innocent citizens of Pakistan. I don't see any valid
point in having a budget when we are going to print
currency right, left and centre, and stuff our bank
accounts with other peoples money. I don't see the point
in having a budget when the education of the people of
Pakistan is at the bottom of the list. And whatever
happened to the Prime Minister’s famous speech after
the explosions? "Me and my Ministers will not
withdraw any compensation from bait-ul-maal". Where
is that saving listed in the budget? It is not there, and
the reason is that the payroll accounts were overdrawn in
the recent past.
People of Pakistan need to open their eyes and realise
that their survival is based on One Nation, One Destiny,
Under One God. The abusers of Pakistan should be hanged
regardless of their ethnicity and party affiliation.
Junaid
Oklahoma City
USA
- Nice to see a change in the
'current issue' column. Now when Sharif has offered a
genuflect to the Clinton administration the IMF life
support system will obviously continue for Pakistan.
Chances are that economy will stabilise if not
deteriorate. The budget as usual is a taxing one for
middle/lower class.
Ahmar Khan Durrani
Pakistan
- This is a great budget. We
are spending lots of money for our military purpose. We
can skip our lunches/dinners but we will not stop to put
our neighbouring country in trouble. Otherwise what will
be our motivation? Why will OIC give us money? My dear
Pakistanis, we are not living for ourselves. We are
helping our community. Imagine when whole world will be
ruled by Islamic rulers. Every person will be a musalman.
I request you to support this budget even if you
don’t get clothes to wear, food to eat, even if you
die because of starvation. Your determination must be
very high because some of us (those don’t have
feelings for community) will try to kill you, try to pull
out food from your mouth, before dying from starvation
may hurt your family. Be strong for all these crises, we
will not put our step back. Once again I would like to
say our budget is great.
Prof. AAfaq Khan
England
- To Abu Qalam from
Australia:
Are you out of your mind? Is Pak Budget to save Pakistan
or to destroy India?
Pakistan and its people must now realise their economical
position instead of investing lots in Kashmir. It’s
time to realise the importance of our own Pakistani
people rather than the Kashmiris. We should not compare
our economical prosperity with India, as India’s
state of economy is better than our. We should instead be
proud that our per capita is better than the Indians.
Syed Khaleelullah
Pakistan, Karachi
- Whatever the budget is,
it’s a game for, by, and from the politicians to the
finance experts. Nobody is the winner. How many
politicians are poorer after coming to power? Everybody
who comes to power becomes rich and this is the pattern
in the whole of Asia (particularly India and Pakistan).
So it will be foolish to spend national wealth on Arms
and Religion. It should be well spent on Education.
Today, the rich Pakistan community in the US and other
countries is only due to its education. Their cousins
from India and Bangladesh are settling down well, they
should not talk of religion in Pakistan sitting here,
where they send their children to American schools
without any Islamic education. But they want their own
people to get exclusively Islamic education. What an
irony! I for one never stop to get surprised by human
nature’s dark side showing its face on a national
scale as in the case of middle class society of Asia.
Matt Reddy
USA
- Budget is just a statutory
obligation; every government is habitual to amend its
budget proposals during the fiscal year. Many and more
mini-budgets are always expected.
Amer Sheikh
Pakistan
- The Budget 1999-2000 is
very bad for Pakistan.
Tippu
Washington, USA
- The budget is quite good
but only if no mini-budgets follow on like in 1998-99.
Usman Khalid
Saudi Arabia
- I think the budget is not
feasible for the people who belong to middle or lower
middle classes. The government always says that it is
working to kill poverty in Pakistan but I think such
types of budgets can only increase poverty. But rulers
are also right in saying that they will demolish poverty
and bring prosperity: when the poor will die due to
hunger and tensions, as necessities of life would become
a dream for them. This budget is excellent and splendid
for the people who are multimillionaires. It is good only
for rulers who can't count their money.
Faisal Nadeem
Pakistan
- It is important for
Pakistan to spend more money on education and to build
better relations with its neighbours. This is the only
way Pakistan can get out of debt.
Siddhartha Buddha
USA
- You Pakistanis are like a
blind person who has a rope in hand, but complains of
snake. You like to discuss your budget, but out of 7
opinions 3 talk about India. Opinion 6 is talking about
Indian brothers and making them realise that they are
living in a fool’s paradise. The noble man forgets
to see that those fools migrated to Pakistan 50 years ago
and have been given an additional name of Mohajir and are
treated like foreigners. Muslims of Hindustan including
Kashmir are more happy and enjoying similar rights in
Hindustan. No Pak-military or religious budget will help
budge Hindustan from its path of progress. And your
fanatics will not get any help from your Allah as he
loves his children of Hindustan more.
Raju
USA
- What budget! All Nawaz
Sharif and his generals know is that Indian progress
should be stemmed. It is ridiculous to expect a decent
budget from this government.
Abdullah
USA
- I think this is another sad
budget for the poor and victims of dictatorship nation of
Pakistan. I absolutely denounce it.
Ali Amjad
USA
- I personally do not believe
in budget. Budget is a western trash. In my personal
life, I do not set budgets; I just do not buy anything if
I do not have money. Or if needed, I borrow, and pay it
off as soon as possible. I have not read of any occasion
when Mohammed (sw) or any of the Khulafa-e-Rashideen ever
did budgeting. Few years ago only Germany had 'lived'
within the budget for one year, only because they did not
have any military spending. We have an ongoing greed. The
nation is corrupt. Do not forget that as long as there is
an opportunity to make money, the weapon manufacturers of
the "advanced" nations will make sure that
countries not geographically linked with them are always
fighting. After the USSR was dissolved, the world thought
that there was finally peace on earth. Then came the
crises of Iraq, Kosovo and now Kashmir. We are a Muslim
country and unless we respond tooth-to-tooth and
eye-to-eye, we will never be at peace and no budget will
be accomplished. Also the Pakistani government officials
are too busy looting the nation. Remember that banks have
written off billions of rupees owed by Senators,
Parliamentarians, etc. The PM's record itself is not
clean (remember the loan in UK). What we really need is
an honest Pakistani in power (good luck in finding one)
who truly believes in this verse from surah Imran:
La yettaghizil mumenoonal kafereena awliya a min doonil
mumeneen.
"Do not make friendship with Kafirs instead of
Muslims".
What we have today is 'hate Muslims and become slaves of
non-Muslims". So there should not be any budget; a
budget that we know is going to cause hardship to the
poor people.
Jamil Ahmad
Canada
- The budget will do no good
to our already suffering people. We will only be widening
the gap between our rulers and our people. It is time to
think about the nation and economy seriously.
Akram Khan
USA
- With no loan money coming
to the country from the IMF or the World Bank, as they
have been in jeopardy for a few years, our crook leaders
are worried as to where to steel from. So they come up
with a JOKE, that they call budget, which shows the
calibre of our PM and his accountant (Finance Minister)
Ishaq Dar.
Hafeez
USA
- This budget is not as bad
as we had expected it to be. One can find many good as
well as bad steps. On the whole, it is OKAY if not GOOD.
Wahab Hameed
Pakistan
- Some steps were good
especially the removal of Octroi system but the overall
budget is not so good. The increase in salary is
misinterpreted. The defence budget should be increased
keeping in view the current situation.
Abdul Wadood Ghazi
Pakistan
- What budget are you talking
about? Your economy is in a deep shit and you grovel
before the USA...what do you know about budget? You think
you can fight India? Your countrymen don't have clothes
to wear and you are purchasing Mirage 5 from France on
World Bank's loan? Your pilots are going to sit naked?
Rajju
India
- Not only this one, but also
the previous budgets, has been a joke with the ordinary
citizen of Pakistan.
M.Aslam Najef
UAE
- We should spend more money
on defence, as defence has become weak. Pakistani people
will always support its brave army. We must also double
the salaries of our brave soldiers. Nation has to
sacrifice for upholding Islam and the right path. Only a
militarily strong nation will earn respect from the
world. Once the security is taken care of we can spend on
education and health.
Khalid Siraj
UK
- Which budget? The one
presented in the tamed assembly or being presented and
supplemented every fortnight?
Dr.Anwaar Ahmad
Ankara University
Turkey/Pakistan
- This happens every year ...
the Government says " tax free budget",
"no new taxes", "life will be easier for
common people", etc..
And later, the common man suffers the most. Prices of
everyday necessities skyrocket way before budget and go
even higher after every subsequent so-called "mini
budget". This is an old game being played to
increase the suffering of poor people making them even
poorer year after year. Government of "X" or
"Y" does not matter; all play the same game in
the name of helping "Poor people of the
country". You ask anyone and everyone expects higher
prices after the new budget NOT lower; because the
budgets never help a common person; they only multiply
the problems he is already facing. We need some REAL
LEADERS who can make some REAL changes in society. This
will not happen until we have leaders who know the
feelings of not being able to provide food to their
family because they can't afford to feed them 3 times a
day; or people who are working 18-hours a day just to
barely meet the ends and keep up with soaring prices.
This is the "same old game" being played in our
country by "OUR" leaders for years. May Allah
help us! Aameen.
Shahzad
USA(Pakistani)
- The budget is reasonable
neither for the middle class nor for the lower class.
Nazir Ahmed Shaikh
Pakistan
- The budget is not based on
the fact. The fact is that we are not able to support the
infrastructure for more than a week in case there is a
suspension of international support. This makes the
overall situation very grim. With the mounting pressure
on the fight with India over Kashmir, the financial
situation is bound to go from bad to worse.
Suleman
USA
- Excellent budget: Keep it
up!
Kamran
Pakistan
- Religious and military
budgets both should be increased, especially because
India is a next door neighbour, is a big country, and is
non-Islamic. Pakistan must establish contact with Muslim
brothers all over India and inform them that they are
living in a fool’s paradise.
Abu Qalam
Australia
- Spend money that will
improve Pakistan's economy and make it as strong and
lively as India's. It is clear that half the reason the
western countries are behind India in the Kargil affair
is India's commanding economical status. We need to
prioritize our issues and realize that Pakistan is a
sinking ship if all our financial efforts are allocated
for military needs. The truth is that we are not even
capable of beating India in a military engagement.
Maqbul Aliani
USA
Back Issues |
Current Issue
The News International