Interview with KalPoint.com


KalPoint.com (KPDC): Please share few words about your family, education and your journey towards a successful life?

Mr. Ghani Usman (GU): We are 4 brothers and 5 sisters. All brothers are well to do mashaAllah. I was born in (Batwa) India. We moved to Pakistan after partition. I am 61 now and have two daughters and one son. One daughter is married and she has two daughters. My other daughter is doing O’ levels and son has completed his MBA by the grace of Allah. He is also married and has one son.

I studied at Karachi Academy till grade VI, then left school and spent next two years in doing little chores. I frankly accept that I was not very fond of studies at that time. My elder brother then motivated me to continue studies. He encouraged me so much that I decided to appear in matriculation (private) examination in 1961.It’s all by the grace of Allah that I cleared all papers. Afterwards I completed my intermediate.

As far as my professional life is concerned, I am an industrialist and had been a member of all three extensions. It is also an honor for me that I had served as Board member at Karachi for 17 times and had offered my services as Vice Chairman for 5 times. I am also President of Batwa Anjuman Himayat-e-Islam, Vice Chairman of Batwa Rahat Committee, Chairman of Batwa Rahat Housing Committee, member of Managing Committee at Kharadar General Hospital and Hilal Ahmer, President of All Pakistan Memon Federation (APMF), Board member of CDC and National community. Again it’s all by grace of Allah that I am the only person who had been the board member for continuous two years from Karachi and Lahore stations.


KPDC: Are you satisfied with what you have achieved so far? Is this the place you had planned for?

GU: I never planned to be here. I have never even dreamt to reach this level.
It’s all by the grace of Allah and due to my parents’ prayers and I am really thankful to Allah for all His blessings.


KPDC: Do you think All Pakistan Memon Federation is performing all its responsibilities to its full or do you feel there is still a room for improvement?

GU: Till now individuals having political background had been running APMF. Now I am the President and I have no political background at all. I admit that APMF has been serving the community very well. Different schools, hospitals, madarassas etc. are being run purely for welfare. However, nothing is perfect. We are trying to take initiatives to bring the whole community at one platform leaving behind all other differences. I always say one thing to all my friends. We are first Muslims, then Pakistanis, then Memons and then something else. So we should share and work for same objectives at broader level instead of finding differences among ourselves. Only this way we can progress as a nation.


KPDC: The savings of Pakistan are very low at both individual as well as Govt. level? How can savings be ensured uniformly?

GU: Savings depend on how much you earn. In Pakistan average salary scale ranges from Rs.4000 to Rs.7000 per month. How can you expect that an individual who belongs to a middle class and earns limited salary can save any amount after bearing daily expenses? People here in our country are living from hand to mouth. They hardly make their both ends meet. You can observe people from middle class are more interested in buying life insurances. The reason is because they are worried about their families. On the other hand, an individual having a strong financial condition would never buy life insurance, as he knows that he has already earned much amount for his family.

At Government level, however, savings can be made through prize bonds. Careful measure should be taken in this area to elevate this percentage.


KPDC: Our religion emphasizes on moral values. Considering this a Muslim businessman should observe more moral ethics than a non-Muslim. Please Comment.

GU: Of course you are right. First we are Muslims then anyone else. Our religion teaches us the best way to do business. But unfortunately we don’t follow it to its full. People have misconceptions that we should not do business with non-Muslims. It’s completely wrong. We can do business even with non-Muslims but should never ignore our ethics. Otherwise we cannot progress.


KPDC: APMF must’ve done a great deal of work for Memons of Pakistan. Has the federation played any significant role for resolving issues like dowry?

GU: Dowry is of course one of the major issues of our society. It has become part of our culture now. Marriages are considered incomplete without dowry. It’s so weird but the groom’s family prepares and demands a list of items from the bride’s family. I say if a father, who belongs to a middle class, has 5 daughters; how would he be able to bear the expense of heavy dowry for all his 5 girls. But unfortunately no one thinks in this regard and the result is that many girls remain unmarried just because their fathers can’t afford the other side’s demands.


KPDC: Do KSE follow any process for resolution of investors’ complaints against members and between inter-stock exchanges members?

GU: Such disputes are resolved through the discussions of the Arbitration Committee of the Exchange. Suppose if a member does injustice to you. Then you should send your complaint to the same member in writing first. If he does not reply then you should send your complaint to the Managing Director of Stock Exchange. Any complaint if it portrays serious issue is then forwarded to the Arbitration Committee. The members of the Arbitration Committee then make the final decision keeping in view the whole scenario.


KPDC: Please give any message for our youth.

GU: Always work honestly and with good intention. Allah will help you then. Some people get the chance to move forward earlier than others. It all depends on Allah’s wish. He knows best. There are so many examples around us of people like Mr.Hanif S.Kalia, Mr.Arif Habib and myself; we were nobody before 30-35 years. But we all worked with good intentions and Allah gave us this success. Here I would like to add one more thing; always think for your country before you think for yourself. Remember we are Muslims and then Pakistanis and then anyone else. So we should work hard and contribute something for the progress of the country.

Question: Generally the welfare organizations in Pakistan do not perform their duties with devotion. What factors in your view are responsible for this attitude? (Samad Khusro, UK)

GU: I don’t agree with the statement. If not all then most of the welfare organizations are performing well enough at their level. Here you can take the example of Mr. Abdus Sattar Edhi. Everyone knows how sincerely he is fulfilling his responsibilities. I agree sometimes people take advantage of being well known. But these are just few in number. Our community is also running different Memon schools, madarasas, hospitals, social housing projects etc. under the supervision of different organizations. Here I would like to mention one thing. Some organizations purely run with donations. So if fund is there the service can be provided otherwise sometimes they are not able to do so. I think for past 10 to 15 years the social work is being performed with good interests.

Question: Being a leading member at KSE, what measure would you suggest to a layman while investing in stocks? (Shahnawaz Khan, Karachi)

GU: Two types of investors take interest in KSE. Educated and un-educated. I always advise all individuals whether they are literate or illiterate to discuss their financial position with the members first. Similarly it is also the responsibility of the members to advise people to discuss their financial condition with the members before making any investment. The members should then carefully analyze how much investment the individual can make. The educated group has an advantage over the other category here. They can easily research about the financial position of the company by observing its balance sheet, future plan, dividends etc. before making any investment. I have noticed even the highly educated class of our country sometimes do not understand the stock market and in turn bear great losses.

Question: Asalam U Alaikum and Welcome on Kalpoint.com. Since you are the President of APMF I would like to ask why no action has been taken for late night dinner till now. If you have taken any move please let us know. In Gondal (India) nikah takes place in mosque in morning which is then followed by lunch at nearest Hall/Comunity Centre. Why can’t we do this? (A. Rauf Khanani, Karachi)

GU: You are 100% right. We conducted a meeting regarding this issue few days back too. But I believe this issue is not just supposed to be talked off at our level. It is also the responsibility of the society to take actions against such practices, which have now become part of our culture. I think such celebrations where dinner is served so much late should be boycotted.

The way marriages are being celebrated in (Gondal) India these days is not very different from the way marriages were celebrated in Pakistan around 25-30 years ago. But according to our present routine, which includes 9 to 5 office timings, it’s not possible now in weekdays. However, we can initiate such celebrations on Sunday.

KPDC: Thank you so much for being here and enlightening us with your thoughts. C U on Net.

GU: I enjoyed being here too. C U On Net 2.
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