IMF programme delay adding to uncertainty
There is growing unease due to delays in the IMF board approval. The Staff-Level Agreement (SLA) was reached in mid-July, with earlier expectations for board approval in mid-September. While the…
An intriguing televised address
Federal Finance Minister Muhammad Aurangzeb, in a televised address to the nation this Tuesday past claimed that the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Board’s approval, a prerequisite for disbursement of the…
No politics for the young
The last time a student union election was held in Pakistan was 1983, which means the previous generations to contest student union elections were the Boomers and Gen X, born…
Politics of blame game
In its heyday, Enron was described as the greatest company in the world. Named by Forbes for six consecutive years as America’s most innovative company, Enron boasted 20,000 employees and…
Legislative autocracy
Pakistan’s political terrain, where the drive for democratic stability is constant, sees the formation of a new narrative. As the ruling PML-N and its coalition PPP push forward with legislative…
The PTA’s obfuscation
X (formerly Twitter) is officially blocked in Pakistan and finally there is proof. On March 20, 2024, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), in response to petitions challenging the restriction on…
Hawkish SBP, happy IMF
Some say it was stubborn food inflation that forced SBP’s hand at the MPC, combining with the usual Ramazan effect and typical incompetence of price monitoring committees to rule out…
Aurangzeb: legitimate expectations?
Expectations are extremely high with the appointment of Muhammad Aurangzeb as finance minister on 11 March 2024 – a position that he was reportedly offered even during the caretaker setup…
A tangled web indeed
As could be anticipated, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf’s (PTI’s) protests on March 10, 2024 against alleged election rigging were nullified by the police, particularly in Punjab, where newly inducted Chief Minister…
‘Economic wars’ and national strength
The seventh annual edition of the ThinkFest literary event was held in Lahore this past weekend. Dr Yaqoob Bangash – whose day job as a historian makes him especially sensitive…
