Pension is not just a few thousand rupees. Pension is a cover for a retired person which he uses to protect his honor
- Making the pension system dependent on certain market factors or putting cuts on the older formulae will only aggravate the miseries of masses
Kamran Akhtar Siddiqui
A clip circulating on social media platforms showed an old man in desperate condition. His wife stood beside him. The man said words which find resonance with every public sector employee in Pakistan. He said, “Pension is not just a few thousand rupees. Pension is a cover for a retired person which he uses to protect his honor.”
This sentiment finds resonance with all employees in Sindh right now as their right to pension comes under threat from the Sindh Civil Servants (Amendment) Act, 2024.
Sindh government’s proposed amendment to pension payments is seen as indispensable act to reduce the burden on the public exchequer, disregarding the hardship of millions of people who rely on pension as the sole means for their survival
With inflation running high and salaries reduced by higher taxes, masses are already in dire financial straits. Depriving a large segment of their due pension right will only add salt to their injuries.
Sindh government’s proposed amendment to pension payments is seen as indispensable act to reduce the burden on the public exchequer, disregarding the hardship of millions of people who rely on pension as the sole means for their survival. Government’s concern of reducing pressure from exchequer contradicts the government’s decision to procure 138 double cabin vehicles for junior bureaucrats and still considering it as a necessity.
Moreover, when it comes to their own salaries, the Sindh Assembly Members (Salaries and Allowances) Bill 2025 does not seem to create any burden on the public exchequer.
Instead of replacing the government pension system with the new one, the government must be sane enough to digitize the pension system to reduce fraud and misappropriation of funds. Making the pension system dependent on certain market factors or putting cuts on the older formulae will only aggravate the miseries of masses.
Government must understand that pensions are a means to survival for many families in these financially hard times. Thus, dignity of employees in particular, and masses in general, should be non-negotiable in any reform.
If there is a will, there is a way.
Read: Increasing Inflation in Pakistan: Causes, Consequences, and Remedies
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The writer is a faculty at Sukkur IBA University.
