Tackling sugar barons

The cat is finally out of the bag. Prime Minister Imran Khan has allowed the release of an inquiry report by a commission formed to probe the sugar crisis that rocked the nation early this year, creating artificial shortages and sky-rocketing prices of the essential commodity.

The prime minister was presented a damning report over the sugar cartel that has manipulated the industry for several years. There was intense speculation that the report would not be published as it implicated several aides close to the prime minister and could even rumours that it could dislodge his government. The prime minister refused to cow down against the sugar barons and decided to make the report public.

The report reveals how, for decades, the sugar mills owners have been exploiting farmers by purchasing even below the support prices. These mills own maintained two books of accounting, one for their own record and another for tax evasion. They made advance payments to farmers and ran an informal banking network. Sugar prices were involved in other practices such as price speculation, bypassing regulation and multiple wrongdoings.

The report also exposed the nexus between the sugar barons and several political bigwigs. The sugar industry is dominated by six big companies controlling 51 percent of the market share. Among the most prominent names were PTI stalwart Jehangir Tareen, Moonis Elahi, Sharif family, and Omni Group linked to Zardari. According to the report, sugar mill owners benefit between Rs100-150 billion every year due the price increases.

As if this was insufficient, these sugar mills continued to receive export subsidies. A whopping amount of Rs25 billion was paid as subsidies during the last five years. Many sugar mills received subsidies from provincial governments. While these mills continued to make windfall profits, they made only Rs10 billion in taxes. An entire network of irregularities has been exposed thriving for years with impunity.

The report is being hailed as historic and the first time a government has released such a report which implicates itself as previously such inquiries were brushed aside. This prime minister said that he has seen injustices against the farmers and has decided to challenge these mafias exploiting the nation.

The prime minister deserves credit for making  the report public the exposing the sugar cartel in the country. It is necessary that strict action should be taken against those implicated in the report. It is imperative that the sugar crisis is regulated to stop exploitation of farmers to avoid artificial shortages an price hikes in the future.