Awards for expats sending biggest sums home

[Naveed Yaseen]

By Ikram Hoti
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari is set to launch a Best Overseas Pakistani award for expatriates that make considerable transactions of foreign currencies through banks for specified terms to beat the liquidity crunch and the mounting crisis of balance of payments.

Sources close to the President told The News that it is his own idea and he shared it with some confidantes for making preparations at the Ministry of Finance, Board of Investment and Overseas Pakistan Foundation etc to list facilities, rewards and distinctions for Pakistanis that respond to the call from homeland.

The medal, they said, would be accorded to the compatriot that sends back largest amount in foreign currency or helps in doing so. Such medal could be stipulated not only for the largest-transaction maker but also for diplomats, community leaders and activist from Pakistan or from internationally active organizations that make meritorious efforts for making such transactions possible.

Such transaction would of course be monitored by the international organizations that keep watch on foreign assets and there would be singular use of them: Beefing up reserves to help maintain the balance of payments.

Apart from the Best Overseas Pakistani award, certificates and incentives would be offered to Pakistanis that make transactions of considerable amounts. To this effect, financial administrative and social institutions and organizations would be activated to ensure that such countrymen feel elevation in serving their country in such a big way.

The financial incentives might include sovereign guarantees for the security of the transacted amounts; lucrative investment opportunities, soft-loan facility for construction of houses and agricultural apparatus back home at the location of choice etc.

Administrative incentives might include renaming roads and even small towns of the native villagers after the depositor’s own or his/her parents’, dinner with the President or the Prime Minister or both at the Presidency or Prime Minister’s House or both, attendance by President or Prime Minister or Culture Minister of the marriage of son/daughter, renaming of school, hospital or town hall as per demand of the depositor.

Sources that chose to stay unnamed said the President might even convene a dinner for the first respondents to his call at the President House and launch the medal, awards and services, facilities package at such a function. The Prime Minister might also host a separate function at the Prime Minister’s House in this connection.

President Asif Zardari is also believed to be approaching the Opposition leaders like Mian Nawaz Sharif, Imran Khan, Asfandyar WaliKhan, Altaf Hussain and others to take lead and ensure success to such a launch.

http://www.thenews.com.pk/daily_detail.asp?id=141797