A country at war allocates peanuts to it armed forces

[Pksecurity]

Pakistan’s budget 2014-15 presented before the Parliament highlights the priority its political leaders assign to national security. The country’s military, and by extension, the Pakistani State is at war. Foreign-aided insurgency that has claimed close to 10,000 military lives is raging though there are some signs of let up after the military (army and air force) have started targeting safe havens of the enemy in restive FATA region. Practically, Pakistan is at war if we look at the figures of casualties, both military and civilian, but if we look at the attitude of political leaders in power, everything is hunky dory.

Let us look at budget figures to know how government is sensitive to national security needs.

Consider this: The total defense budget is Rs. 700.15 billion as against total budget outlay of Rs. 4,302 billion which shows defense gets a paltry 16.27% of the budget. Annual increase in defense is 11% and if we adjust this increase with 8.5% inflation, effective increase works out to 2.5%. Defense gets no preference as overall increase in current expenditure over the past year is 8%.

And this is allocation for salaries of the troops and operation and maintenance expenses. The Armed Forces Development Plan is a forgotten story. The political government treats eferred dpayments on account of equipment purchased 10 years ago as an unnecessary burden. During the last seven years, there was no significant acquisition of military hardware which could make Pakistan’s defenses invincible vis-à-vis India.

And the army and air force are engaged in deadly battle with insurgents without any extra allocation that a country at war should make for its defense force.

By contrast, India, whose defense preparations are Pakistan-specific, allocates five times more to its defense services with a steady increase every year.

There will be hue and cry by the foreign-influenced media and ill-informed politicos about the defense budget vis-à-vis Pakistan’s development program. Fact of the matter is that Pakistan’s fiscal woes are not defense-related; these are related to elite-based taxation system where rich and mighty earn, plunder and steal but refuse to cough up due to their political clout. Pakistan is barely making both ends meet, not due to its spending but because of its failure to mobilise resources. According to credible estimates, the country can five time more revenues if its taxation system is not elite-friendly. Due to this, the share of development; education, health, infrastructure is also embarrassingly negligible in the national pie. Every penny government raises is from the poor and hapless segments of society through indirect taxes giving nothing in return.

In nutshell, budget gives a clear message; decision-makers are more concerned to appease the classes which have plundered country’s resources and as for the national security, it is not a priority of the political class.

Pakistan's war-weary military gets peanuts in the national pie

 

[ashoka87]

Considering the defense to GDP ratio which is more than 2 per cent It is well according to other countries' defense to GDP ratio
How ever as a country U have to decide ur priority and with that make an allocation rather investment in the country's future

 

[FenrirX]

Pakistan’s budget 2014-15 presented before the Parliament highlights the priority its political leaders assign to national security. The country’s military, and by extension, the Pakistani State is at war. Foreign-aided insurgency that has claimed close to 10,000 military lives is raging though there are some signs of let up after the military (army and air force) have started targeting safe havens of the enemy in restive FATA region. Practically, Pakistan is at war if we look at the figures of casualties, both military and civilian, but if we look at the attitude of political leaders in power, everything is hunky dory.

Let us look at budget figures to know how government is sensitive to national security needs.

Consider this: The total defense budget is Rs. 700.15 billion as against total budget outlay of Rs. 4,302 billion which shows defense gets a paltry 16.27% of the budget. Annual increase in defense is 11% and if we adjust this increase with 8.5% inflation, effective increase works out to 2.5%. Defense gets no preference as overall increase in current expenditure over the past year is 8%.

And this is allocation for salaries of the troops and operation and maintenance expenses. The Armed Forces Development Plan is a forgotten story. The political government treats eferred dpayments on account of equipment purchased 10 years ago as an unnecessary burden. During the last seven years, there was no significant acquisition of military hardware which could make Pakistan’s defenses invincible vis-à-vis India.

And the army and air force are engaged in deadly battle with insurgents without any extra allocation that a country at war should make for its defense force.

By contrast, India, whose defense preparations are Pakistan-specific, allocates five times more to its defense services with a steady increase every year.

There will be hue and cry by the foreign-influenced media and ill-informed politicos about the defense budget vis-à-vis Pakistan’s development program. Fact of the matter is that Pakistan’s fiscal woes are not defense-related; these are related to elite-based taxation system where rich and mighty earn, plunder and steal but refuse to cough up due to their political clout. Pakistan is barely making both ends meet, not due to its spending but because of its failure to mobilise resources. According to credible estimates, the country can five time more revenues if its taxation system is not elite-friendly. Due to this, the share of development; education, health, infrastructure is also embarrassingly negligible in the national pie. Every penny government raises is from the poor and hapless segments of society through indirect taxes giving nothing in return.

In nutshell, budget gives a clear message; decision-makers are more concerned to appease the classes which have plundered country’s resources and as for the national security, it is not a priority of the political class.

Pakistan's war-weary military gets peanuts in the national pie

Sweetly done
According to Ishaq Dollar the elite class wants to pay taxes but because the system of tax collection is so corrupt and unfriendly that is way they perhaps hesitate.

 

[damdam786]

I was reading in economy section that actual defence budget for this year is 1113bn which is 26% of total budget. And 3.8% of GDP!

 

[xyxmt]

Pakistan’s budget 2014-15 presented before the Parliament highlights the priority its political leaders assign to national security. The country’s military, and by extension, the Pakistani State is at war. Foreign-aided insurgency that has claimed close to 10,000 military lives is raging though there are some signs of let up after the military (army and air force) have started targeting safe havens of the enemy in restive FATA region. Practically, Pakistan is at war if we look at the figures of casualties, both military and civilian, but if we look at the attitude of political leaders in power, everything is hunky dory.

Let us look at budget figures to know how government is sensitive to national security needs.

Consider this: The total defense budget is Rs. 700.15 billion as against total budget outlay of Rs. 4,302 billion which shows defense gets a paltry 16.27% of the budget. Annual increase in defense is 11% and if we adjust this increase with 8.5% inflation, effective increase works out to 2.5%. Defense gets no preference as overall increase in current expenditure over the past year is 8%.

And this is allocation for salaries of the troops and operation and maintenance expenses. The Armed Forces Development Plan is a forgotten story. The political government treats eferred dpayments on account of equipment purchased 10 years ago as an unnecessary burden. During the last seven years, there was no significant acquisition of military hardware which could make Pakistan’s defenses invincible vis-à-vis India.

And the army and air force are engaged in deadly battle with insurgents without any extra allocation that a country at war should make for its defense force.

By contrast, India, whose defense preparations are Pakistan-specific, allocates five times more to its defense services with a steady increase every year.

There will be hue and cry by the foreign-influenced media and ill-informed politicos about the defense budget vis-à-vis Pakistan’s development program. Fact of the matter is that Pakistan’s fiscal woes are not defense-related; these are related to elite-based taxation system where rich and mighty earn, plunder and steal but refuse to cough up due to their political clout. Pakistan is barely making both ends meet, not due to its spending but because of its failure to mobilise resources. According to credible estimates, the country can five time more revenues if its taxation system is not elite-friendly. Due to this, the share of development; education, health, infrastructure is also embarrassingly negligible in the national pie. Every penny government raises is from the poor and hapless segments of society through indirect taxes giving nothing in return.

In nutshell, budget gives a clear message; decision-makers are more concerned to appease the classes which have plundered country’s resources and as for the national security, it is not a priority of the political class.

Pakistan's war-weary military gets peanuts in the national pie

the writer of this article must have just woken up from comma or something, anyway the dumbest piece of writing

 

[Pksecurity]

I was reading in economy section that actual defence budget for this year is 1113bn which is 26% of total budget. And 3.8% of GDP!

That could be the notional figure. Actual cash allocated is close to $7 billion.

 

[damdam786]

That could be the notional figure. Actual cash allocated is close to $7 billion.

No actual is 1113bn which is over $11 billion. Army just don't include pensions, etc in "defence budget" like India does. So actual spending is over $11 billion.

 

[I M Sikander]

710 Billion defense budget seems very low keeping in view the amount allocated for total non sense program like Benazir Income support program, Rs118 billion in fiscal year 2014-15 witnessing an increase of 200 per cent.

If 118 Billion could be allocated for politically motivated programs like BISP then Defense budget should have been much higher.

 

[majesticpankaj]

what about more than 2 Bn USD for nukes ...???

 

[Fahad Khan 2]

Bhai first see economy govt first priority is to improve economy...

If economy will improve then army will also get good share...