IMF Loans and Pakistan Hassan N. Khan, Sun Valley, CA
During the Asian financial crisis, the Forbes Magazine ran an article spotlighting how the IMF was working to bring down the Government of President Suharto in Indonesia. Regardless of our political beliefs about his reign as the President of that country, the gist of the article was about the ill-advised policies that IMF demanded of that country in lieu of the financial bailout and currency devaluation. Some of us will recall the massive protests and even looting that followed due to the sudden and massive devaluation of the Indonesia Rupia.
I firmly believe that multinational organizations like the IMF, WTO etc. do not have the sincere desire to rescue the economy when it comes to the impoverished countries. This is the kind of thing at we as Americans fear as a One ‘Government’ world body. The days of physical colonization are over but the real art today is to control certain societies through economic means.
I would encourage some economists to further delve on this idea with specifics as there is no dearth of real-life cases such as these.
Naveed Khan, San Jose, CA
IMF borrowing is not the answer to current problems in Pakistan. Pakistanis have for very long been borrowing and enjoying life. Pakistan needs strict accountability and self-reliance.
IMF borrowing will only deepen the crisis.
Iftikhar Memon, Wellington, Fl
IMF loans will not help our economy due to the austerity measures that it will demand Pakistan to employ in exchange for the loans. The already tattered social infrastructure will weaken even more and people at the bottom of the ladder will be hurt the most. Having said that without the IMF loans Pakistan’s economy could not possibly jumpstart itself, thus the loans are a necessity. One can only hope that the military regime takes pity on the plight of the poor as opposed to the past governments which only concerned themselves with filling their own coffers and their mismanagement explains why Pakistan needs these loans. Pakistan has the potential but it lacks leadership; let’s hope we see good leadership before it’s too late.
Mahammad Riaz, Santa Fe Springs, CA
IMF loans are designed as a welfare system for the ruling class that is accustomed to free hand outs and in general has no core ethical values regarding work or dignity of Pakistani people as a nation. IMF exploits this and advances loans with the full knowledge that the money is used for personal gains. In a way, IMF breaks the US anticorruption and anti-bribery laws. What is most surprising is the eagerness of the affluent expatriate Pakistani community which rolls out red carpets for politicians, bureaucrats and ex-generals, many of whom are fugitive from law.