Editorial
Cost of Political uncertainty
It is incalculable
We cannot agree more with the business leaders that the major impediment to achieving a higher rate of annual growth is the turmoil engendered by the political situation in the country.
It was not surprising that, notwithstanding the snag in infrastructural support, political uncertainty happens to be the most serious concern of the business community, because in the long run it enhances the cost of doing business. And that is why it is important that the government addresses this concern in right earnest.
It cannot be good news that investment, both foreign and domestic, has been discouraged by the looming uncertainty; neither can be anything more disheartening to know that business has been hamstrung when banks hesitated to fund projects because of the same reason. It affects too the RMG sector, only more so, and the fact that there is suddenly a fall in inflow of order from international buyers can only be blamed on the political situation in the country.
It will do well for both the government and the opposition to realise the serious consequences that the country is proceeding towards due to not only the intransigence of the two major parties but also their inability to grasp the consequences of the outcome of the position that they have assumed.
We would urge the government and the opposition to ensure that nothing happens that would hamper the country's external trade, or which impedes productivity. The capital market is only recuperating from the shock it received very recently which resulted in liquidity crunch, and one would not like it to be affected by political unrest nor would one like to see the daily wage earners as well as the fixed income group to suffer due to price shock that is only inevitable from political disorder.
The message for the government and the opposition is clear, ensure political stability. However, we want to clearly emphasise a more proactive role from the government to engage the opposition in bringing about stability.
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