Chapter 164: Press Meet (3)
"Wilson," that reporter wasn’t fazed and told his name, "I don’t know if there are studies, but fifty years ago the Brunton Family lost everything and almost liquidised their company and now the Brunton family is one of the richest family in the world. How did they achieve it if not by exploiting Esteria and their people? "
Talia couldn’t believe what she is hearing. Her grandfather didn’t give up when the odds were against him, was wise in his investments, had a little luck and rose to the place he is now with the help of other hardworking people who supported him. He raised more people from poverty than the government in the past years. How is that exploiting?
" By working hard, Mr. Wilson. With the help of the hardworkers who stood by my grandfather and helped him build this company. The same ones who are reaping their hardwork now in the form of wealth. If we are talking about the conditions fifty years back, Esteria was in economic depression and the GDP per capita was merely around three hundred dollars. And now Esteria is one of the richest nations in the world with a median income one of the best in the world. Recent studies made in A Country has explained in detail, the contribution of Northern Star in growing Esteria into a developed nation. Even now, Northern Star pays sixty percentage as income tax. A quarter of the gross income of Esteria through taxes comes from Northern Star groups alone. How is Northern Star exploiting Esteria?"
" But if we nationalise Northern Star, we will get hundred percentage of the profit and we can use it for the further development of Esteria!" the reporter still insisted.
Talia didn’t know what to say to that guy who thinks he could just grab someone else’s legacy to share with someone who doesn’t know the value of it. For her grandfather, Northern Star is not just a company. Some of the shareholders hold the same view as him too. It was the tree he planted along with his wife. The tree that helped a lot of people. The tree that reminds him of his late wife. How can someone be allowed to dig it out and take it away from him to be planted somewhere else? Will they love the tree as much as her grandfather?
Will a tree survive if it is dug out from one place and get planted at another place? No!
If they change the administration of Northern Star, everything will change. The salary of the staff will reduce to government standards and this will reduce the enthusiasm of the staff and workers. Without enthusiasm, the production will decrease and with reduced production, the profits will fall. To combat the fall in profit, the prices of commodities will go up causing inflation and in the end, the economy will fall.
It is inevitable.
"Mr. Wilson, speaking of using the funds for the welfare of the common people... When will the High Council stop accepting grants from the tax payer funds and let the Parliament use that funds for the welfare of the common people? The Duchy of Oakley stopped accepting grants for decades. When will the rest follow? In the latest budget briefing, the Finance Minister announced almost forty percentage of the tax payer funds as grants for the Nobles. That is forty percentage of money that is supposed to be used for the welfare of the Nation that is diverted to the pockets of individuals! " Talia asked with a smirk. She was entirely enraged.