The government claim of 2.5 million new jobs baseless: PEW

Lahore: The Pakistan Economy Watch (PEW) on Tuesday said budget will intoxicate the already flimsy investment climate in the country resulting in shrink industrial base, tax evasion and flight of capital.

Industrialists would prefer trading, real estate and construction sectors over expansion while many would relocate or simple transfer funds abroad bringing rupee under pressure.

Government has done nothing in the budget to encourage investment in the budget or reverse the trend among the businessmen to prefer trading over industry, said Dr. Murtaza Mughal, President PEW.

He said that the lethal combination of IMF tax (GIDC), petrol price hike and FBR measures will contract growth and industrial sector and promote tax evasion.

Dr. Murtaza Mughal said that budget proves government’s decision to punish honest taxpayers while remaining indifferent from broadening tax base as not a single government official said a word about releasing refunds to the exporters.

Government has announced a package for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa but it is less likely that anyone would dare investment in that province, he remarked.

He said that banks would continue to prefer forwarding loans to the government as discourage private sector in absence of any directions to them.

Government has claimed reduction in unemployment and provision of 2.5 million jobs is the new fiscal which is baseless, he said, adding that creation of new jobs require minimum of seven percent growth rate which is impossible in the next two years due to deadly policy of promoting nobility.