রাওয়ালপিন্ডিতে আইউবের গােলটেবিলে বঙ্গবন্ধুর বক্তব্যের কিছু অংশ: (১০ মার্চ ১৯৬৯)
The existence of per capita income disparity between East and West Pakistan is known to all. As early as 1959-60, the Chief Economist of the Planning Commission estimated that the real per capita income disparity between East and West Pakistan was 60%. The Mid-Plan Review made by the Planning Commission and other recent documents show that the disparity in real per capita income has been steadily increasing and, therefore, would be much higher than 60% today. Underlying such disparity, is the disparity in general economic structure and infrastructure of the two regions, in the rates of employment, in facilities for education, and in medical and welfare services. To give just a few examples, power generating capacity in West Pakistan is 5 to 6 times higher than in East Pakistan; the number of hospital beds in 1966 in West Pakistan was estimated to be 26,200 while that in East Pakistan was estimated to be 6,900; between 1961-1966, only 18 Polytechnic Institutes were established in East Pakistan as against 48 in West Pakistan. Further, the disparity in the total availability of resources has been even higher. More than 80% of all foreign aid has been utilized in West Pakistan in addition to the net transfer of East Pakistan’s foreign exchange earnings to West Pakistan. This made it possible for West Pakistan over 20 years to import Rs. 3,109 crore worth of goods against its total export earnings of Rs. 1,337 crore, while during the same period East Pakistan imported Rs. 1,210 crore worth of goods as against its total export earnings of Rs. 1,650 crore. All these facts underline the gross economic injustice which has been done to East Pakistan. There has been a failure to discharge the constitutional obligation to remove disparity between the provinces in the shortest possible time. The Annual Report on disparity for the year 1968 placed before the National Assembly records that disparity has continued to increase.
The centralisation of economic management has thus failed miserably to meet the objective of attaining economic justice. It has failed to meet the constitutional obligation to remove economic disparity between region and region. Instead, therefore, of persisting in centralized economic
management which has failed to deliver the goods, we should adopt a bold and imaginative solution to this challenging problem. The Federal Scheme of the Six-Point Programme is, in my view, such a bold and imaginative solution.
It is in essence a scheme for entrusting the responsibility for economic management to the regions. This proposal is born of the conviction that this alone can effectively meet the problems, which centralised economic management has failed to overcome. The unique geography of the country, resulting in lack of labour mobility, as well as the different levels of development obtaining the different regions, requires that economic management should not be centralised.
The specific proposal embodied in the Six-Point Programme with regard to currency, foreign trade, foreign exchange earnings and taxation are all designed to give full responsibility for economic management to the regional Government. The proposals with regard to currency are designed to prevent flight of Capital and to secure control over monetary policy. The proposals regarding foreign trade and foreign exchange are designed to ensure that the resources of a region are available to that region and to ensure it to obtain the maximum amount of foreign exchange resources for development purposes. The proposal regarding taxation is designed to ensure control by the regional goverments over fiscal policy, without in any way depriving the Federal Government of its revenue requirements.
The substance of these proposals are as follows: (a) With regard to currency, measures should be adopted to prevent
flight of capital from one region to another and to secure control over monetary policy by the regional governments. This can be done by adoption of two currency with a separate Reserve Bank being set up in each region, to control monetary policy, with the State Bank retaining control over certain defined matters. Subject
to the above arrangements, Currency would be a Federal subject. (b) With regard to foreign trade and aid, the regional Governments
should have power to negotiate trade and aid, within the frame
work of the foreign policy of the country, which shall be the
responsibility of the Federal Ministry of Foreign Affairs. (c) The foreign exchange earnings of each region should be maintain
in an account in each Regional Reserve Bank and be under the control of the regional Governments; the Federal requirements of foreign exchange would be met by appropriations from the two
regional accounts on the basis of an agreed ratio. (d) With regard to taxation, it is proposed that the power of tax levy
and collection should be left to the regional Governments, but the Federal Government should be empowered to realise its revenue requirement from levies on the regional Governments. It should be clearly understood that it is not at all contemplated that the Federal Government be left at the mercy of the regional
Governments for its revenue needs. I would emphasize that there would be no difficulty in devising appropriate constitutional provisions whereby the Federal Government’s revenue requirement could be met, consistently with the objective of ensuring control over fiscal policy by the regional Governments. The scheme also envisages that there would be just representation on a population basis of persons from each part of Pakistan in all Federal services, including Defence Services.
If these principles are accepted, the detailed provisions can be worked out by a Committee consisting of experts, to be designated by both parties.
The scheme holds enormous promise of removing the canker of economic injustice from the body politics of Pakistan while at the same time removing the mistrust and frustration which centralised economic management has fostered over the ears. I am confident that the people of West Pakistan would give their whole-hearted support to this scheme.
I urge the participants in this Conference to come forward with open minds and with large hearts, in a spirit of fraternity and national solidarity, to adopt the Federal Scheme presented above, as the only means of overcoming what has been one of the most formidable problems confronting the country, i.e., that of the attainment of economic justice. No
source has fed the current crisis more than the sense of economic injustice. Let us remove it; let us tackle problems at their source. Any attempt to avoid coming to grips with these basic problems will jeopardise our very survival.
Neither Almighty Allah nor history will forgive us if at this time of national crisis we fail to rise to the occasion to adopt bold solutions in order to restore the formidable problems which have created a national crisis. This is a great opportunity, and one which may not present itself again, to face our national problems squarely. We must, therefore, strain every nerve to agree upon and implement the required solutions. Let us strive together to lift our beloved Pakistan out of the tragic situation in which she is placed, and to lay the constitutional foundations for a real, living, Federal Parliamentary Democracy, which will secure for the people of Pakistan full political, economic and social justice. Only thus can a strong and united Pakistan face the future with hope and confidence.
The 10th March, 1969.
Ref: ঊনসত্তরের গণ আন্দোলন ও বঙ্গবন্ধু – তোফায়েল আহমেদ