A Mature Exercise with Credit to Both Businessmen and Govt
In response to the tough conditions imposed in the proposals for the Federal Budget, the nation’s business community observed a token two-day’s strike throughout the country. The protest was largely successful and remained peaceful. Transport plied normally, banks remained open and small businesses such as restaurants, bakeries, pan shops, medical stores, etc., were not affected. On the government’s part, except for some ludicrous attempts at disinformation and the occasional threat, there were no real ham-handed attempts to break the strike call. Within the limits imposed on its credibility parameters, Pakistan TV grudgingly acknowledged the success of the strike. All in all, this was a very mature exercise on which credit must go to both the sides, the businessmen in maintaining unity in registering its protest in a civilised manner and GoP for restraining its normally more baser urges. Notwithstanding the open-ended provocative threat made by the PM the night before the two-day strike, the expected bite did not follow.
