The business community on Saturday asked the government to cut the “unprecedentedly long” six day Eid holidays, saying it will be counterproductive for the economy.
“Shutting down the country for nine consecutive days was unacceptable would create a lot of problems for the economy and the business community,” Businessmen Group Chairperson Zubair Motiwala said.
“It will particularly hurt exporters, who will not be able to dispatch shipments to foreign countries due to complete closure of banks, ports, customs and all other departments during excessive holidays. The government must review this decision and announce Eid holidays from May 12 to May 15, which will enable exporters to dispatch shipments on May 10 and May 11.
“We cannot afford prolonged holidays as they result in losses worth billions, terribly affect trading activities particularly exports, and deprive daily wagers from desperately needed earnings,” he added.
