ISLAMABAD: A news item published in Business Recorder, Ministry of Industries and Production (MoIP) has clarified that independent private directors on Board of Directors (BoD) of PSM were nominated by previous government and to allege the non-professional attitude of the Board without any cogent reason seems unjustified.
Regarding the matter of influential parties in competition to purchase of
precious land Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) for peanuts as alleged in the news item, the MoI&P has clarified that “the land of PSM is not to be sold to private parties but only leased out for a specific period for industrial purposes only, which is the sole domain of Privatization Commission. Furthermore, no transaction details have been provided in the news item confirming lease/ sale of land by this Government. Hence, no evidence to substantiate the claim has been provided”.
The MoI&P further stated that the reporter has also made a remark regarding entrusting of the task of privatization of PSM to Muhammad Hammad Azhar who runs his own steel business. “It is clarified that that the insinuation in the news item is not based on reality. Muhammad Hammad Azhar owns a rerolling mill which is one of more than hundreds operating in the country. The mill produces deformed steel bars, this product has never been produced by PSM”. Therefore, any comparisons being drawn by the author of the news item between such businesses and PSM does not merit consideration.
The MoI&P has reiterated that privatization is the sole responsibility of the Privatization Commission, and not the Ministry of Industries & Production.
BR staff reporter adds: The claim of the Ministry that the independent private directors were nominated by the previous government is only partially correct as the Chairman of the PSM Board, who is taking all the decisions, has been appointed by the incumbent government. It has not been stated in the report. It is widely understood that the Lahore-based company of Minister for Industries and Production, Hammad Azhar M/s AFCO Steel was a consumer dealer of billets of PSM.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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