MAJYD AZIZ

Former Chairman : SITE ASSOCIATION OF INDUSTRY

Member Managing Committee :EMPLOYERS’ FEDERATION OF PAKISTAN

On June 11, 1998, about two weeks after Pakistan entered the nuclear age, Prime Minister Muhammad Nawaz Sharif addressed the nation, and in an euphoric, somber, and defiant mood presented his National Agenda. This was his idea of a blueprint for the 130 million citizens of Pakistan. This was his idea for Self-Reliance, Change, Reconstruction, and Development. This was his idea to usher the country into the next millenium as an economically, strategically, and technologically developed force.

The art of presenting highly charged rhetorical manifestos by leaders is nothing new in this country. The emphasis has always been on populist-type of demagoguery which has been the hallmark of Pakistan’s hierarchy. The truth of the matter is that latter day leaders with the help of a well-oiled sycophantic machinery, have perfected this style of unfolding guidelines or agendas. The leaders are then given exalted status and portrayed as Messiahs by spin doctors, but the results have seldom been what the people wanted or what they perceived as panaceas for their misfortunes.

The National Agenda of Prime Minister Sharif aims to achieve the objectives of self-reliance and hopes to bring the citizens together with a common purpose and a common goal. He asked for personal sacrifices and collective austerity. He demanded proper payment of taxes and full settlement of liabilities. He advocated the need for consensus in building the Kalabagh Dam and for combating global economic sanctions. He promised land to the tiller, education to the illiterate, loan to the youth, and dignity to the denizen. In short, he pledged in all sincerity, the transformation of Pakistan into the ultimate realization of Iqbal’s dream.

The agenda has been unfolded. The guideline has been laid down. The plan is ready for execution. Thus the vital question: Where do we go from here? Who will lead the way? Will it be the architect of this agenda? Will it be the followers of the master planner? Or will it be the people themselves who will have to undertake this arduous journey to the Promised Land? The Prime Minister displayed sincere concern and genuine regard for his vision. However, it seems he was stymied by forces who obviously have influence over him to counter his conceptions. His party members and his advisory cabal have been bumbling roadblocks towards the implementation of this agenda. There is no cohesion or semblance of activity among this coterie. It seems that like other agendas, this too was destined to be relegated to the dustbin of history.

The fact of the matter is that it is now imperative upon the citizens of Pakistan to take the agenda at its face value and heed the call. The fact of the matter is that inspite of the cynicism and inspite of the attitude of leaders who do not practice what they religiously preach, the national agenda has positive points to embark upon. The fact of the matter is that employers and workers can and should play a decisive and determined role in achieving certain aspects of the agenda. The cause is national and absolutely crucial for the very survival of this Islamic country.

The Prime minister gave a clarion call to the educated young people of the country and invited them to join the economic revolution by participating with their talents, their expertise, and their ideas. He encouraged them by outlining a program to provide them with enough monetary capital to get them started. This is an ambitious program and its acceptance and success depends entirely on the proper utilization of the loans provided to the deserving young people. It is hoped that like the notorious yellow cab scheme, this program too will not be usurped, and the scarce monetary resources will not be gulped or misused by the influential class.

The Prime minister called upon the chambers and trade associations, and also those who manage and run technical training institutes, to guide these young people on the basis of their knowledge and experience to select suitable and profitable projects for them. At the same time, he promoted the establishment of small and micro industries all over the country. He specifically mentioned that during his visit to Italy, he was informed that nearly sixty percent of Italy’s exports came from cottage industries. He said that this was true of Japan also. Another point of his agenda was the proliferation of educational facilities on a zealous and missionary scale.

The employers of Pakistan are at a vantage position to take up the challenge and ensure that certain aspects of the national agenda are seriously and genuinely implemented. The employers do know that bureaucratic red-tape will play its universally established role to thwart all plans for change. The recent financial and economic debacle epitomizes the dominance of the Babu mentality prevalent in the Finance Ministry. However, after decades of mismanagement and failure, it is time that the government allows the private sector perspective to take charge and get the country moving on the path to prosperity.

The youth self-employment scheme can work wonders if the employers accept the Prime Minister’s request to chart out a plan for the youth. The emphasis is definitely on the need for micro and small industries, and the youth can work in tandem and with the support of large corporations or groups, to survive and to deliver quality products and services. The advantage of low overheads, the application of earned skills, and the attention to quality standards, can and will be a major consideration in achieving the objectives. These factors can boost the morale of the youth and also provide their principals the products and services without the latter investing heavily in their own facilities and without sustaining front loaded and continuing expenses. The small entrepreneurs will get access to domestic and global markets, courtesy their principals. They will also get technical and logistics support which would normally not come their way in solo activities.

The employers can also initiate programs to support the youth thru technical, managerial, and financial training programs so that the skills of the youth are ideally honed and that they can supplement their knowledge and experience on a more practical level. The development of human resources is a vital ingredient towards the attainment of the objectives of the national agenda, a point well elucidated by the Premier himself. The present trend of imparting training in these development programs is surely a positive sign, and a vivid example is the setting up of the Skill Development Councils by Employers’ Federation of Pakistan, in cooperation with ILO and the Government of Pakistan.

The liberalization of the global economy and the advent of WTO have put pressures on countries like Pakistan to improve their industrial regime if they want to survive. The emphasis on quality standards, such as ISO-9000, environmental standards, such as ISO-14000, and labor standards, such as elimination of child labor, right to form unions, forced labor etc, will necessitate a dramatic rethinking in the way Pakistany employers do business. Therefore, it will be of prime importance for the cottage industries to develop a close relationship with the established industries so that they are in a position to compete internationally.

The employers have to become visionaries and come out of their cocoons if they want to be world class players. The narrow minded thinking of the feudals, bureaucrats, and merchants, with regard to the education regime has ensued into a scenario where the country is still teetering in the lower echelons of the literacy rate. The ostrich-like attitude, whether thru a desired mindset or thru apathy, has been the cause behind this pathetic state of affairs. There have been very few benevolent people who have dedicated their lives to disseminating education and scholastic knowledge to the young people of the country. The rot has set in and those who manage the "ghost schools" have played a cruel joke on the future of the country. Alas, there have been no sincere efforts by the government, and the country has been unfortunate in having nincompoops and anti-education persons officiating as education ministers and advisors both at the federal and at the provincial levels. There is a need to fundamentally change the education structure in the country and this can be superbly done by the private sector. The education departments will continue to appoint teachers who are zero-based in imparting education to the children. Merit is still an elusive feature in the appointment of teachers and tutors. The chambers and trade and industry associations must take upon themselves the task to promote educational institutions for the children of their workers and employees. This should be altruistic ventures and not money-making machines. The education system of the country is slowly sinking like the Titanic. The private sector can rescue those who are on the education ship.

The pathetic economic situation in Pakistan will lead to massive bank defaults, bankruptcies, and piled-up inventories. The policy makers in government have resorted to all kinds of gimmickry to hide their failures, their conspiracies, and their corruption. The result has been a steep increase in product costs, while unemployment and inflation rates have been zooming up. There is a fear that the situation may take a drastic turn and there could be massive closures, retrenchments, strikes, and lockouts. The export figures are depressing to read, and there has been frequent devaluation of the national currency. The economic managers have proved themselves abject failures at their task and they have lost control of the country’s economy. The business community is in an agitational mode and the newspapers are full of news about various markets and associations going on prolonged strikes. The scene is dismal and there is talk of a replay of the South Asian economic meltdown being enacted in Pakistan too.

The employers organizations must join hands with the progressive labor leadership and strive together in a bilateral manner to ensure the systematic and smooth functioning of the industries and the commerce establishments. There is an immediate need to pragmatically consider the economic difficulties faced by Pakistan and to evolve sustainable policies so that the present industrial and trade environment is not vitiated. The management-labor nexus should be a strong binding force to demand and compel the government to change the course of the country’s economic march. They should ensure that the government gets rid of its gimmick mentality and takes immediate measures to restore public confidence and trust. They should convince the government that its agreements with external lenders be made transparent so that the people could know in what way their future has been mortgaged. They should impress upon the government to retire the present team in the Finance Ministry and to induct private sector representatives to overhaul the financial and economic system in the best interests of the nation.

Moreover, there is a need for employers and workers to improve productivity in the industrial and trade organizations so that the country can manufacture better quality products at effective costs. The government has finally reduced the number of holidays and this will be a great help in increasing the production levels. There should be determined programs to provide substantial incentives to drastically cut down cases of absenteeism, low productivity, inferior quality, and management-union confrontations.