The United States House of Representatives has unanimously approved the Kerry Lugar Bill which ramps up non-military

aid to Pakistan to $1.5 Billion

annually for the next five years.

A debate has been raging on in Pakistan regarding the bill with critics arguing that the bill undermines the country’s respect and dignity. Proponents hail it as a
bill that will triple non-military aid to Pakistan to $1.5 billion annually and are labeling it as a long term “investment” by the United States in its ally. The stringent
conditionality laid out in the Kerry Lugar Bill stipulate that Pakistan should,

cease support – including by any elements within the military or intelligence agencies – to extremist and terrorist groups AND
provide to the US relevant information from or direct access to Pakistani nationals associated with such networks

The first clause insists that Pakistan should take action against militant groups on its soil and take measures to prevent them from launching attacks on foreign
soil. Interestingly, India has never been chastised by the United States for its alleged involvement in our tribal belt and Balochistan. The second clause would
mean that Pakistan would have to grant the US access to Dr. A.Q Khan for possible interrogation pertaining to nuclear proliferation. Many would argue that
such a move would spark an outrage in the country as Dr A.Q Khan is regarded as a national hero within Pakistan.
To add insult to the injury, the annual tranche of $1.5 billion would be released every year “after” Hilary Clinton or Richard Holbroke have passed an NOC or a
No-Objection Certificate certifying that Pakistan has “fulfilled” the conditions stipulated in the bill.

Pakistan should scrutinize the the Kerry Lugar bill and its clauses by reading between the lines before accepting it for a paltry sum of $1.5 billion in aid every
year for the next five years. For starters, the sponsors of the Kerry Lugar bill are senators John Kerry (Democrat) and Richard Lugar (Republican). Both are
elected representatives of the people of the United States of America and it would be naive to suggest that their loyalty to Pakistan exceeds their commitment
to the national interest of America. The bill has been carefully drafted to extract maximum cooperation from Pakistan in its fight against militants within its
borders. Pakistan has suffered the brunt of this war, with hundreds of suicide bombings and thousands of civilian casualties on its home turf. The dictates laid
out in the bill are a long way from appreciating the sacrifices this country has made during the past nine years.

The Kerry Lugar bill is just a symptom of a major problem which is our tendency to spend beyond our means resulting in trade and budget deficits. Pakistan
imports more than its exports which results in a trade deficit. Likewise, the government spends more that it earns through tax revenues which leads to a
budget deficit. These deficits have to be financed and there lies the root cause. Our expenditures far exceed our ability to finance them and hence we go
knocking on the doors of foreign countries for aid and loans. These aid packages and loans comes with strings attached and shackle us with terms and
conditions and we are forced to take dictates from the likes of IMF, the World Bank and donor countries.

Pakistani emigrants residing abroad send remitences worth six to seven billion dollar each year. A more viable alternative to the Kerry Lugar Bill should be a
governement sponsored strategy to tap into this vast pool of emigrants and channel their increased earnings into the country.