How Pakistan’s Elite Captured The State, The Market & The Mind

[panzerfaust 3]

Isn't it the same in pretty much every country these days ??

More or less

 

[Blueishere]

Isn't it the same in pretty much every country these days ??

Is that your excuse?

 

[PK781]

Is that your excuse?

what excuse? Where was such indicated?

are you siding with the indians? Perhaps change your flags?

 

[kambhakt]

If it wasn't for the fauj Pakistan would have balkanized by the 60s.

You did lose half in 1971. And the people who left seem to be doing much better than the people left behind. Maybe balkanization is better for the people of Pakistan than to live ruled by the elite.

 

[Dalit]

More or less

"Saaaaar, let me give my jeet input!"

 

[Dalit]

You did lose half in 1971. And the people who left seem to be doing much better than the people left behind. Maybe balkanization is better for the people of Pakistan than to live ruled by the elite.

Says the extremist Hindu from India that got his country split during British rule. It is funny you Indians should be talking about balkanization when the colonial power literally chopped you into pieces. You Hindu extremists haven't even recovered from that trauma.

 

[kambhakt]

Says the extremist Hindu from India that got his country split during British rule. It is funny you Indians should be talking about balkanization when the colonial power literally chopped you into pieces. You Hindu extremists haven't even recovered from that trauma.

Topic is Pakistan. You can open another thread for any other country.

 

[Dalit]

Topic is Pakistan. You can open another thread for any other country.

Piss off jeet. You don't even belong on this forum.

 

[kambhakt]

Piss off jeet. You don't even belong on this forum.

Tell the mods

 

[Goenitz]

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Pakistanis are even moving to China

 

[Fatman17]

 

[Fatman17]

Elite capture in Pakistan refers to the structural manipulation of state resources, tax codes, and regulatory frameworks by a privileged few, severely hampering economic growth. This concentration of power—costing the economy an estimated 6 percent of its GDP—manifests in deep-rooted monopolies, heavy subsidies, and widespread tax exemptions. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Here are the key mechanisms and groups driving elite capture in Pakistan:

• Identified Elite Groups: The state apparatus is frequently appropriated by eight key groups: the military establishment, state-owned enterprises, large landowners (feudal lords), the top 1% of high-net-worth individuals, large traders/exporters, industrial elites, and the banking sector. [1]
• Distortionary Taxation: The tax code is structured to protect elite interests. Highly productive sectors (like manufacturing and labor) face heavy taxation, while politically influential sectors—such as massive real estate portfolios, wholesale/retail trade, and agriculture—enjoy exceptionally light taxation. [1, 2]
• Regulatory Capture & Monopolies: Industrial elites frequently shape trade policies (like import curbs and tariff manipulation) to shut off foreign competition, severely hurting export potential and maintaining high domestic prices. [1]
• Subsidies and Privileges: Privileged entities secure access to lucrative state contracts, cheap subsidized energy, and capital. Research by institutions like the Pakistan Institute of Development Economics (PIDE) outlines how these state privileges grant unearned wealth to a select few. [1, 2, 3]
• Policy Design Capture: The individuals and bodies responsible for drafting economic, governance, and anti-corruption reforms are often a part of this same elite ecosystem, resulting in reforms that are largely cosmetic and rarely address the root causes of the system. [1]
• Macroeconomic Mismanagement: Policies like an over-valued exchange rate are used to benefit the elite by enabling cheap imports of luxury goods, while simultaneously stunting job creation and facilitating the transfer of wealth out of the country. [1]
• State-Owned Enterprises (SOEs): Rent-seeking in major SOEs (such as Pakistan Railways or Discos) siphons off state resources, providing disproportionate benefits and privileges to well-connected insiders rather than maximizing public welfare. [1]
• Broader Economic Impact: The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and international bodies have repeatedly noted that elite privilege crowds out genuine private investment, severely exacerbating inequality, poverty, and unemployment. [1, 2]
• Google AI