LAHORE: Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, delivered a comprehensive address to the business community at the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry Regional Office in Lahore on Tuesday, where he articulated his vision for economic development through mutual trust and collaborative partnerships rather than coercive measures.

 

Speaking before an audience of prominent business leaders and political figures, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari asserted that a nation's economy cannot be driven by force but functions best through mutual trust, goodwill, and cooperation. He acknowledged that while national challenges exist, they cannot be attributed solely to the International Monetary Fund. The PPP Chairman recognized the difficulties in establishing economic zones and expressed a firm commitment to work closely with the federal government to overcome these hurdles. He particularly stressed that the Prime Minister's genuine intent is to resolve the nation's problems.

 

The event witnessed participation from several distinguished personalities from both the business and political spheres. FPCCI President Atif Ikram Sheikh, Patron-in-Chief of the United Business Group S.M. Tanveer, Vice President Zaki Ejaz, Senior Vice Chairman Momin Ali Malik, Chairman of the FPCCI's Businessmen Panel Mian Anjum Nisar, President of Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry Faheem-ur-Rehman Saigol, and other senior leaders also addressed the gathering. The occasion was graced by Governor Punjab Sardar Saleem Haider Khan, FPCCI Vice President Abdul Momin, former Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf, Qasim Gilani, Haider Gilani, and other prominent personalities.

 

During his address, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari announced that his party is ready to play an effective role in reducing electricity prices in the country. He emphasized the critical importance of promoting public-private partnerships to take advantage of opportunities in the sectors of education, health, energy, and economic zones in collaboration with the private sector. He highlighted that the Pakistan Peoples Party and the business community have always maintained strong, constructive, and purposeful relations.

 

Regarding the contentious issue of taxation, Bilawal acknowledged that the business community's point of view is very valid. He stated that while everyone shares the common goal of increasing Pakistan's revenue, tax collection, and tax net for economic progress and human development, there are different perspectives regarding how to reach that goal. He criticized the approach of both the current and previous governments, which attempted to run the economy by force, arguing that such methods are ineffective. Instead, he advocated for running the economy with understanding and mutual respect. Citing an English proverb, he noted that one can catch more with honey than vinegar, suggesting that respecting tax-contributing citizens instead of browbeating them would yield far better results.

 

The PPP Chairman provided a compelling example of successful decentralization by referencing the collection of sales tax on services. He explained that before the 18th Amendment, the Federal Board of Revenue collected sales tax on services for the federation, with records showing the limited amounts collected. After the 18th Amendment, when Sindh and other provinces started collecting these taxes for the federation, every province collected more than what was previously collected by the federation. He described this as clear evidence of the benefit of decentralization. Notably, the performance of Sindh province in collecting these taxes has been better than other provinces, which he attributed to Sindh having lower sales tax rates on services compared to other provinces, thereby encouraging the business community to conduct business in the province.

 

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari proposed a significant reform to the Federal Board of Revenue, suggesting it should become an institution in which every province has representation. He emphasized that people and the business community should have confidence in the FBR to achieve tax collection targets. He stressed that taxation should be viewed as a responsibility rather than a burden. He presented a proposal to the federal government that if it needs to overcome economic difficulties, the solution already exists. Currently, the FBR collects sales tax on goods for the federation, and this responsibility could be transferred to the provinces. He suggested that if the provinces meet the set targets, they would be ready to give all collections to the federation. However, if the provinces fail to meet the targets, the federation could deduct that amount from their share in the national divisible pool, with the condition that if provinces collect more than the target, the extra amount would be given to the province that collected it. This system, he argued, would create an incentive for provinces to perform better.

 

Turning his attention to the future prospects of the business community, Chairman Bilawal commended the efforts and research conducted by business leaders across 165 districts in Pakistan to increase export opportunities. He expressed his desire to provide input and assist in implementing their efforts. He recalled that the PPP laid the foundation of the China Pakistan Economic Corridor with the aim of benefiting Pakistan and its people. He shared his pride in discovering during his tenure as foreign minister that China specially accommodates Pakistan and wants to give preference to Pakistani goods for export, but lamented that Pakistan is not taking full advantage of this Chinese preference for Pakistani goods. He urged stakeholders to benefit from this favorable status before seeking additional concessions. He noted that China has provided opportunities in every sector, but Pakistan has not fully capitalized on these opportunities. He expressed hope that the federal government is working on exploring opportunities arising from the new global tariff situation.

 

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari also highlighted Pakistan's Generalized Scheme of Preferences Plus status with Europe, noting that Pakistan has increased exports by 80 percent through this arrangement. Simultaneously, Europe has benefitted with a 60 percent increase in exports to Pakistan. He suggested exploring economic opportunities on a district-wise basis, particularly in value-added goods. He emphasized the potential for increasing exports in foreign markets and finding public-private partnerships at the district level. He described district-wise planning as a potential achievement for Pakistan, noting that the President, Governor Punjab, Governor Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, the Sindh government, the Balochistan government, and the Prime Minister all want to work with the business community.

 

Acknowledging differences in approach, Bilawal pointed out that while the current federal administration believes in centralization, his party believes in decentralization. He argued that the district-wise planning proposed by the business community would strengthen the PPP's argument for decentralization. He strongly appreciated the district-wise research conducted by the business community and declared his readiness to consider their recommendations for the economy.

 

Addressing the chronic power issue in Pakistan, the PPP Chairman called for exploring solutions to overcome this persistent problem. He mentioned the need to study the proposal presented by the business community of Punjab in this regard. He recalled that the PPP's manifesto for the last elections aimed to provide relief to people using up to 200 units of electricity, and noted that subsidizing people using less than 200 units remains feasible. He advocated for changing the concept of relief, proposing that instead of cross-subsidizing the rest of the population, the focus should shift to providing green energy to people using less than 200 units in the short term.

 

Bilawal highlighted the PPP's achievements in the energy sector, particularly the Thar Coal Project of the Sindh government, which he described as the cheapest energy generation project in Pakistan. He explained that the Thar Coal Project, a public-private partnership initiative, has provided energy to Faisalabad, even though the project was initially not intended for Karachi. He noted that provincial governments can establish energy generation plants of up to 50 megawatts. The Sindh government has two such plants that supply the cheapest electricity to K-Electric through its own built transmission lines. He extended an offer to the business community of Punjab to obtain coal from Sindh.

 

The Chairman identified public-private partnerships as one of the notable achievements of the Sindh government, which has performed exceptionally well in sectors such as infrastructure, education, health, and energy. He explained that such partnerships have improved the service delivery of the Sindh government. He expressed hope that as a result of the district-wise research conducted by the business community, public-private partnerships can be extended to the district level to achieve great results. He mentioned that the Special Economic Zone of Khairpur in Sindh has been recognized by a Financial Times magazine, and noted that Sindh has other economic zones as well in Larkana, Dhabeji, and other locations. He concluded by emphasizing the need to decentralize these economic zones.

 

Throughout his address, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari presented a vision for Pakistan's economic development centered on cooperation, decentralization, and leveraging both domestic and international opportunities to benefit all stakeholders, particularly the business community and the common citizens of Pakist