Lahore Metro Train : Orange Line

[Jolie]

Re: Lahore Metro Train : Orange Line

@Med911

Im optimistic that with such projects, and the evolution of the political process along with governance in this country, that such issues will resolve themselves over time. Accountability is improving in Pak, people are more aware of the issues.

But none of this will happen without economic development and empowerment. Mass transit is step toward both. It is as essential as electricity is to the far flung villages. Im sure you understand the importance of such projects to the development of the nations cities, and the central role that large cities play in growth.

All I can say is, give it time. Pakistan’s problem isnt one of corruption so much as it is about instability. The lack of a stable political environment creates the environment in which corruption and institutional weakness can thrive. Let the system evolve and function. Over time, the wrinkles will be ironed out. India is considered stable not for lack of corruption, but for democratic institutions, built over successive decades which create at least a modicum of political stability and thus growth.

I’m probably just a product of my environment, but in Britain we say that opposition is half of your government. Opposition is the soul and heart of democracy and it is opposition that sets democracy apart from all other forms of governance styles. Metro Bus project have so many loopholes that it is frankly quite counter productive to ask people not to identify those black holes and speak against them so the future projects can benefit. Opposing world expensive shady projects on merit should not be equated with call for political instability and regime change.

I don’t know but you seem to have this impression that before Metro, people in Lahore were riding on donkey carts. But fact is, Metro is just one lane bus route whereas there are 50 different routes in Lahore with severe bus shortages. So really what factor made Metro project the most expensive mass transit project in the world with so many loopholes? Unfortunately, the project cannot be audited because the government building that was storing all Metro files caught fire. How convenient.

But still, one heavily subsidized, debt ridden extravagant icon project cannot be seen as symbol of ‘economic empowerment’. Fact is Metro Lahore project alone is costing Pakistan’s trouble economy the daily cost Rs5 million. Is this really a sustainable economic model, if you can even call is that?

One thing I have learned from the crisis in Middle East that ‘time alone’ doesn’t fix anything, you need constant efforts to keep the evolutionary process moving forward. Despite political disruptions, Pakistan’s economy was actually doing better than India up until the early 90s, while Pakistan got the most corrupt civilian governments in the face of PMLN and PPP to waste the whole decade, India made landmark economic reforms to liberalise their economy to make it more market friendly. So it was not time, India had to think outside of the box and pass reforms to achieve something.

How can the euphoria of economic empowerment be felt when in reality Pakistan has the third highest cooperate tax in the world, it is ranked below Bangladesh in poverty and human development, industries are shut, unemployment and illiteracy is sky high, and there is so much regional and ethnicity based glaring economic disparities?

In the day of information and staunch regional competition - I refuse to believe that Pakistan has the luxury of wasting another generation hoping that time will automatically fix everything.