Dr. Ikramul Haq “Total debt servicing increased by around 57 percent during FY 2018-19 compared with last fiscal year which was driven by higher domestic interest payments (on account of rise in domestic interest rates) while external debt repayments increased significantly and recorded at Rs 974 billion during FY 2018-19 compared with Rs 450 billion...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “The virtue of justice consists of moderation as regulated by wisdom”—Aristotle. One must acknowledge the reality that those who are connected with imparting justice are highly respectable human beings. They not only serve humanity by setting the wrongs to right but also take upon their shoulders the heavy responsibility of making sure that...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr Ikramul Haq Total debt servicing increased by around 57 percent during FY 2018-19 compared with last fiscal year6 which was driven by higher domestic interest payments (on account of rise in domestic interest rates) while external debt repayments increased significantly and recorded at Rs 974 billion during FY 2018-19 compared with...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq No government in Pakistan, including the present one, ever thought of establishing knowledge-based research platforms for all sectors that need reforms. For example, not a single study is available outlining step-wise tax reforms or promoting tourism. The word “reforms” is a cliché unless backed by a solid research, executable...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq Punjab is the most populous [110 million people] province of Pakistan with largest resources and budget size after the Federal Government, and beneficiary of lion’s share [this year estimate is Rs. 1.6 trillion] from National Finance Commission (NFC) Award. For the last many years, the performance of this province in tax collection...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “Education is like the pooja ghar (place of worship) for us. We are never going to become a for-profit player in education. It will be akin to selling the pooja ghar”—Anand Mahindra. A people-friendly government of any sane country will make best efforts to first improve the quality of its denizens—human resource. A...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr. Ikramul Haq In majority tax frauds, the usual parties are the official(s) and the taxpayer(s). Cases where unilateral tax fraud is committed are rare such as using fictitious bank account(s) to obtain fake refunds. But even in such cases, bank officials are involved with tax officials. It is thus imperative that...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari & Dr Ikramul Haq Public debt as percentage of GDP was recorded at 84.8 percent at end June 2019 compared with 72.1 percent at end June 2018. This increase was primarily due to the build-up of liquidity buffers and higher exchange rate depreciation—Debt Policy Statement 2019-20, issued by Debt Policy Coordination Office of...Read More

Dr. Ikramul Haq The Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan, has repeatedly asserted that Pakistanis are hesitant to pay taxes with the same zeal as they act as philanthropists. The main cause identified by him is mistrust between the taxpayers and tax agencies as well as the failure of successive governments to spend the taxes...Read More

Huzaima Bukhari “Life is really simple but we insist on making it complicated”—Confucius. Nothing seems to satisfy man! Those living in the villages yearn for the bright city lights and sounds and the city dwellers enviously view the villager’s laid back lifestyle. The poor crave for money while the rich find themselves using all means...Read More