Dr Ishrat Husain former governor of State Bank of Pakistan said that bad governance is the root cause of all economic ills.
Dr Husain at a seminar on Pakistan Economic Outlook 2013 & Beyond organized by the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Pakistan said that “The economy is facing lot of difficulties due to bad governance.”
Dr Ishrat who is also Dean and director of Institute of Business Administration, disagreed with the doom and gloom painted about the economy by other speakers, saying that the situation is not as worst as being projected. There is plenty of room to improve the system by improving good governance in law and order, education and energy.
He said that it was an issue of governance that authorities were not taking action against tax evaders and criminals. Due to lack of enforcement the criminals feel comfortable. The country had witnessed a crisis like situation when oil ships were anchored on the ports and government had no money to pay them in the past.
He neither criticized the present government setup nor supported it, but said that the democratic system should be given opportunity for sustainable economic growth. We did not allow democratic system to flourish.
He further added that 50% population of Pakistan is living in an urbanized society and most of them belong to middle class. Besides, a big strength of youth would set direction for better.