It is with reference to your editorial titled Petrol Bomb and other unfair labels. Being reader of your esteemed paper I am badly jolted by your views expressed in your editorial supporting the government for its recent increase in petrol prices. If subsidies are not the proper way to control runaway inflation in the country, then the government cowering (using your terminology in your editorial titled Blasphemy backtrack) to impose agriculture income tax on rich feudals, income of real estate business and stock market magnets is also inexcusable which can stem the tide of burgeoning deficit in budget because of wide gap between income and expenditure.
The imposition of above mentioned taxes can ensure qualitative relief to the public at large from frequent increases in fuel prices and electricity tariff. The IMF demand for levying of RGST can also be welcomed in this case. Furthermore, why cant lavish spending on maintaining army of ministers, state ministers, advisors, and parliamentary sectaries can be dispensed with and the money generously doled out to them on the pretext of infrastructure development in their electoral constituencies can be curtailed. It would be repetitive to suggest that foreign jaunts of ministers and their entourage entailing enormous expenditure on their stay in expensive hotels and hiring of transport can be done away with by instructing them to stay in the embassy accommodation and using its transport.
Since, in your view, corruption is a long term disease, I will stop short of suggesting for only taking peripheral steps like controlling misuse of government transport by the ministers, bureaucrats and their families for shopping and conveyance of their children to and from educational institutions. Many more examples of government funds being wasted through frivolous ways, if stopped, can bring relief to common man from frequent imposition of increase in fuel prices and electricity tariffs.
IQBAL SHAH
Lahore
