Karachi's Business and Political Elite Welcome Musharraf

President Musharaf found a friendly crowd in Karachi during the last weekend visit which coincided with the first anniversary of the Red Mosque raid in Islamabad. As the President met with Karachi-ites, a series of bomb blasts in Pakistan's largest city served as a reminder that there is no escaping the worsening security situation that plagues the entire nation.

At a gala reception in President Musharraf's honor by Karachi's business community, business leaders including Khalid Tawab, Mian Zahid Hussain, Abdul Haseeb Khan, Majyd Aziz warmly welcomed the President and reiterated their full confidence and support for him. Governor Sindh Dr Ishartul Ibad Khan and City Nazim Mustafa Kamal also joined in the welcome, according to Karachi's Business Recorder newspaper.

The President thanked the community and called upon the industrialists to help promote rapid industrialization, investment and jobs creation in the country. He met with a delegation of leading industrialists and chairmen of industrial estates, which called on him at the Governor's House in Karachi on Monday. Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad Khan was also present on the occasion. The members of the industrialists delegation told the President that the number of factories at Karachi's Nooriabad Industrial Estate has grown from 17 in 1999 to 70 now.

Pakistan's tax base has grown with rapid economic growth over the last 9 years. The President lauded the performance of the Federal Board of Revenue and said that tax collection had crossed Rs 1.02 trillion in 2007 from Rs. 500 billion in 1999. With the revenue growth target for the next five years set at 25% per year, the tax base and collection efforts need to continue to expand. Pakistan needs to build confidence to stop flight of capital and grow its exports, he added.

As part of his tour, the President also visited the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP), along with Governor Ishratul Ibad where he met with the State Bank Governor Dr Shamshad Akhtar.

Among the political leaders, the President met with Pakistan Muslim League (Functional) Chief Pir Pagara, who called on him. The details of this meeting were not immediately available.

The President emphasized the need for national consensus in Pakistan to solve the pressing problems of deteriorating economy, political instability, terrorism and growing threat of Talibanization. As the President talked about the need for national consensus, the Sindh information minister appeared before the media and condemned the President and the City Nazim. None of the Sind government's PPP ministers attended any events hosted in Musharraf’s honor either. The Sind Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah instead chose to host a reception in honor of the Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif on Friday in his hometown, as reported in the Pakistani media.

The growing rift between the PPP and MQM does not augur well for the city of Karachi or Sind province. Nor does it give hope for the badly needed economic recovery for the nation. Let's hope that the Sind political leadership reflects on the gravity of the current crises to rise above petty politics. The Sindh government must address the real day-to-day problems faced by all Sindhis, rural and urban.

Here's a brief video clip of the President's address: