This is apropos a Business Recorder op-ed "Incentivizing local investors" carried by the newspaper yesterday. The writer, Ali Khizar, has raised an important point in relation to wealth creation and wealth accumulation. He has argued, for example, "Today, one can count on fingers the documented rich in the country, and biggest of two documented business champions are under accountability scrutiny. This gives message to anyone attaining size to siphon his assets from the country by investing incremental earnings abroad. The governments, current and previous (Miftah-Abbasi duo) have tried their best by giving amnesty scheme and other incentives for people to bring back the money. The government wants to have the cake and eat it too."

It is widely argued that wealth creation is good because of a variety of reasons; it vener undermines people's happiness. But wealth creation can be good only under the right conditions. There will be not much incentive to create wealth in the absence of private property ownership and protection of property rights in letter and spirit of the law.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2019