Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) that was formed to provide socio-economic justice to all and work for social mobility of less-privileged, in its first budget for fiscal year 2019-20, proved to be an utter disappointment on this front. Much has been written about numbers contained in the budget and tax...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq The Prime Minister of Pakistan, in his brief address to nation on June 10, 2019—a day before the announcement of budget for fiscal year 2019-20—asked the rich and mighty to declare their hidden and/or benami assets at home or abroad. Obviously the poor have no such assets. The Prime Minister once again...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “If we want to make this great State of Pakistan happy and prosperous, we should wholly and solely concentrate on the well-being of the people, and especially of the masses and the poor”—Muhammad Ali Jinnah        The definition of prosperity for a nation is not confined to high gross domestic product or a high...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq In 2016, we wrote an article, entitled, ‘Budget of trapped and enslaved’. In 2019 the situation is no different, rather worse. All the six budgets presented by the last government of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) [PMLN] form 2013-2018 had the common characteristics: encouraging imports and destroying exports, crushing the...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq Budget for the next fiscal year 2019-2020 is around the corner, to be announced on June 11, 2019. Due to extreme economic crisis and harsh conditionalities agreed with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in lieu of a bailout package of US$ 6 billion, the Government has already announced that “it will not...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “When you are courting a nice girl an hour seems like a second. When you sit on a red-hot cinder a second seems like an hour. That’s relativity”— Albert Einstein When sitting in judgement with respect to different people and various events, one is prone to making comparisons with one’s own self. Hence,...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq In the forthcoming budget, to be announced on June 11, 2019 under a new economic team selected by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) on the dictates/recommendations of International Monetary Fund (IMF), there will be enhancement in rates of existing taxes and imposition of new duties as target of Rs. 5500 billion has been agreed...Read More

Road to prosperity Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq The poor and helpless masses of Pakistan desperately owe explanation from all those who have been in power: Why the privileged are continuously being favoured and thriving on the money collected as “tax” from their own poorer brethren? Why is it that all taxpayers, irrespective of...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq The budget for fiscal year 2019-20, the first of Government of Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI), is to be announced on June 11, 2019. Every year before the announcement of annual federal budget—which has become  an official ritual—plethora of tax proposals are received by the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) from...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “Economic depression cannot be cured by legislative action or executive pronouncement. Economic wounds must be healed by the action of the cells of the economic body—the producers and consumers themselves”—Herbert Hoover Over a span of thirty years a well-to-do family was reduced from riches to rags because of an elder’s tendency to obtain...Read More