January 20, 2023

ICCI calls for sale of subsidized flour through markets to facilitate people

Islamabad, January 20, 2023 (PPI-OT):Ahsan Zafar Bakhtawari, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said that flour is the staple food of the people, but due to the wheat and flour crisis, the prices of flour have increased manifold in Islamabad like the whole country due to which the common man is facing great problems.

He said that the strategy of providing subsidized flour from specific points has not delivered the desired results as many people have to go without buying flour despite standing in long queues. He stressed that the subsidized flour should be provided to the people through shops in markets to ease the troubles of people. He said this while talking to Deputy Commissioner Islamabad Irfan Nawaz Memon during a meeting with him along with a delegation including the representatives of Flour Mills.

ICCI Senior Vice President Faad Waheed, Vice President Engineer Muhammad Azharul Islam Zafar, representatives of flour mills including Sheikh Tariq Sadiq, Abdul Rahman Khan, Chaudhry Mukhtar Ahmad, Dr. Muhammad Usman, Chaudhry Muhammad Ali, Ameer Hamza, Khalid Chaudhry, Saifur Rahman Khan and others were in the delegation.

Ahsan Bakhtawari said that the government should make all possible efforts to stabilize the prices of flour. He said that the flour mills of Islamabad are facing difficulties in procuring wheat from Punjab because sometimes their quota is reduced which not only makes the flour expensive but also affects the business of the flour mills.

ICCI Senior Vice President Faad Waheed emphasized that instead of Punjab, the government should supply wheat to the flour mills of Islamabad through Passco to save any flour crisis in the federal capital and keep the prices stable. ICCI Vice President Engineer Muhammad Azharul Islam Zafar said that supply of required quantity of wheat to the flour mills is an important responsibility of the government and stressed that the government should evolve a system in consultation with the flour mills to ensure them regular supply of what in order to avoid any flour crisis in future.

Addressing the delegation, Deputy Commissioner Islamabad Irfan Nawaz Memon said that the flour crisis has been overcome in Islamabad due to the better efforts of the administration. He said that in order to improve the supply of flour to the people, 50% of the quota is being given to the shops, while 50% will be provided through specific points, while the ban on the supply of flour would be lifted soon after the improvement of the wheat supply system. He assured that efforts will be made to supply wheat to flour mills in Islamabad through Passco so that they do not face any shortage of wheat.

Sheikh Tariq Sadiq, Abdul Rahman Khan, Ch. Mukhtar Ahmed, Dr. Muhammad Usman, Ch. Muhammad Ali, Ameer Hamza, Khalid Chaudhry, Sai fur Rehman Khan and others also spoke at the occasion and gave useful proposals to overcome the flour crisis in the city.

For more information, contact:
Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI)
Chamber House, Aiwan-e-Sanat-o-Tijarat Road,
Mauve Area, G-8/1, Islamabad, Pakistan
Tel: +92-51-2250526, 2253145, 8432676
Fax: +92-51-2252950
Email: icci@brain.net.pk, info@icci.com.pk
Website: www.icci.com.pk

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January 20, 2023

Impossible to stabilize rupee in presence of a broken economy

Islamabad, January 20, 2023 (PPI-OT):Former President of Islamabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (ICCI) Dr. Shahid Rasheed Butt on Friday said it is impossible to stabilize the rupee in the presence of a broken economy. Oil price freeze by the former government and efforts to stabilize the rupee and bring down the value of the dollar by the incumbent government has damaged the economy and annoyed the IMF, he said.

Shahid Rasheed Butt said in a statement issued here today that even after the failure of the experiment to bring down the value of dollar artificially, the same policy is being followed which is surprising. How the country’s condition can change when there is no change in the important economic policies, he said, adding that IMF is being annoyed which can jeopardise the disbursement of approved loans and grants by other institutions that Pakistan cannot afford.

The business leader noted that the focus of policymakers is on reducing the current account deficit by holding back imports but they are forgetting that exports also require imports. The economy cannot improve unless the exports grow otherwise the government will have to repay the loans through fresh borrowing, he added.

He said that the former rulers damaged the economy by freezing the price of fuel for the sake of popularity and now the current rulers are busy trying to destroy the country’s economy by freezing the price of the dollar while the people are suffering the consequences of both policies. Many politicians are neither willing to give importance to the country’s interest nor to the economy, but focusing on their ego which is damaging the country, he observed.

For more information, contact:
Dr. Shahid Rasheed Butt
Consul General Ghana
Former President ICCI
Former Patron ICST
Tel: +92-333-5132199, +92-51-2822571

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January 20, 2023

Poor, not billionaires should get government support

Islamabad, January 20, 2023 (PPI-OT):The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Friday said packages are given to the poor in western countries but billionaires get support packages in Pakistan. The sole purpose of packages doled out to the rich is to increase their fortunes on the cost of the poor, it said. Masses are always told that packages given to industrial, agricultural, stock market or real estate sectors are necessary for national development which is contrary to the facts, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President of PEW.

He said that there is no concept of tax amnesty schemes in civilized countries, but every government in Pakistan provides an opportunity for the rich to whiten their black money. Dr. Murtaza Mughal said that the former government announced the construction package by promising affordable housing for the poor but not a single house could be built for the poor.

The scheme helped the builders’ mafia earn billions of rupees and it resulted in increased prices of plots, houses and construction materials. At the same time, rents crossed the limits putting a burden on tens of millions of people. He said that industrialists and entrepreneurs in Pakistan are addicted to packages, bailouts and tax amnesty schemes and they do not work until they are given benefits of billions of rupees.

The majority of the importers are involved in under-invoicing which is causing the loss of trillions of rupees to the government. At least four billion dollars are being under-invoiced in trade from only one neighbouring country and their exporters are paid through handi, he informed.

Dr. Mughal said that the authorities know that Pakistan is losing a large amount due to the practice of under-invoicing but no action is taken on it lest it disturbs the influential importers who have political connections. He said that political interests are more important than the national interests of the political parties and they are not concerned about their responsibilities even if the country is burning.

For more information, contact:
President,
Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW)
402, 4th Floor, Gulistan Khan House, Fazal-e-Haq Road,
82-East, Blue Area, Islamabad
Tel: +92-51-2510375
Fax: +92-51-2802449
Cell: +92-321-5157671
Email: president@pakistaneconomywatch.com
Web: www.pakistaneconomywatch.com

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January 20, 2023

Poor political, economic governance bankrupted country: Mian Zahid Hussain

Karachi, January 20, 2023 (PPI-OT):Chairman of National Business Group Pakistan, President Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum, and All Karachi Industrial Alliance, and former provincial minister Mian Zahid Hussain on Friday said Saudi Arabia has asked Pakistan to initiate reforms before obtaining a loan that has sounded an alarm bell for Pakistan.

Pakistan urgently needs loans to run its economy but the need for economic reforms to achieve self-reliance cannot be denied, he said. Mian Zahid Hussain said that the policy of overdependence on imports has played a major role in the devastation of the economy.

Talking to the business community, the veteran business leader said that people should not be deceived by policymakers who put the blame for the economic disaster on external factors. Attributing the events happening in different parts of the world cannot absolve the policymakers of their responsibility.

He said that the reason for Pakistan’s recent problems is the pandemic followed a super cycle in prices and Russia’s attack on Ukraine and recent floods. However, nothing was as damaging for the country as the endless greed of nobility which has pushed the country to the brink, he added.

Pakistan has taken loans from the IMF 23 times and the country is facing difficulties in payments for the thirteenth time since 1988, but despite this, there has been no clear change in policies. PPP has knocked on the doors of the IMF six times, PML-N has borrowed from IMF four times, General Musharraf twice and PTI has done this once and this process continues.

The country has been suffering from the worst political and economic governance for decades, power theft, line losses, gas theft, nurturing of failed government institutions, circular debt, agriculture crisis, energy policy, export neglect and dependence on imports has bankrupted a prosperous country, he observed.

The business leader noted that the elite who are busy plundering the country’s resources with both hands are strongly opposed to reforms in any sector including the economy and no government has the courage to challenge them. Billions of rupees were wasted in the name of reforming the tax system in the last 70 years, but still, the tax collection is hardly ten percent of the GDP, which is shameful.

The situation of health, education, energy, production and other important sectors are not different. He warned that if the policies are not fundamentally changed and they are not aligned with the ground realities, then we should be prepared for any economic disaster.

For more information, contact:
President,
Pakistan Businessmen and Intellectuals Forum (PBIF)
Tel: +92-343-2226888
Tel: +92-300-8233364
Email: ceo@kenlubes.net

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January 20, 2023

UNISAME felicitates New SMEDA CEO

Karachi, January 20, 2023 (PPI-OT):The Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME) has felicitated Farhan Aziz Khawaja, a Grade-22 officer for his appointment as the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Authority (SMEDA), a statement said on Thursday.

UNISAME President Zulfikar Thaver congratulated Farhan Khawaja on his appointment and wished him best of luck and success for his tenure. Thaver said that SMEDA is fortunate to have an experienced officer, who has also served as the managing director of the Punjab Small Industries Corporation (PSIC) and fully acquainted with the underprivileged sector and its requirements.

Khawaja has been entrusted with big responsibilities for the promotion and development of the majority SME sector, he added. Indeed, these are very challenging times and many SME units are on the verge of closure, especially those who are the vendors of the big industries of textiles, automobiles and those dependent on imported raw materials, equipment and parts, chemicals, plastics and several others.

Meanwhile, the UNISAME Council members have also extended felicitations to Khawaja and requested him to impress upon the policymakers to extend the best possible facilities to the hard pressed sector to obtain their raw and packing materials to enable them survive in these challenging times.

For more information, contact:
Union of Small and Medium Enterprises (UNISAME)
75/1 3rd Commercial Street, Phase IV, D.H.A.,
Karachi, Pakistan
Tel: +92-21-35884225-6
Fax: +92-21-35380642
Cell: +92-300-8245307, +92-321-8245307
Email: unisame@gmail.com
Website: http://www.unisame.org/

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January 20, 2023

Board meeting of Tandlianwala Sugar Mills Limitedto be held on January 30, 2023

Karachi, Tandlianwala Sugar Mills Limited informed Pakistan Stock Exchange that the board meeting of the company is scheduled to be held on January 30, 2023 at Lahore. The agenda of the meeting shall be consideration of quarterly accounts for the period ended December 31, 2022.

Further, the closed period of the company shall be from January 20, 2023 to January 30, 2023 (both days inclusive).

“The Company was incorporated in Pakistan on November 01, 1988 as a public limited company. The principal activity of the Company is production and sale of white crystalline sugar and ethanol.

TSML produces sugar, ethanol and carbon dioxide and produced its first refined sugar in 1992 and have expanded frequently since then. The Sugar operation of the company is began with their mill at Kanjwani, in Punjab’s Faisalabad District. TSML is also Pakistan’s ethanol producer, manufacturing both ENA and REN grades.

The total numbers of shares are 117,706,300. The Earnings per share is (2.39) in 2020 which was 12.30 in 2019. The Profit after Taxation is (281,725,000) which were 1,448,317,000 in 2019.”