Revival plan approved by Cabinet: MoF opposes bailout package for PSM

The federal cabinet on Wednesday gave approval to a plan for the revival of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM). The Ministry of Finance (MoF), however, opposed a bailout package for the mega public-sector entity. Briefing the media here on decisions taken by the Cabinet, Federal Minister for Information Firdaus Ashiq Awan said a bailout package for the PSM was presented in the meeting. But the Ministry of Finance opposed it.
She said the bailout package would be given a practical shape after consultations with the ministry concerned. However, the cabinet approved a plan for the revival of Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) to convert it into a profitable national entity. The Ministry of Production briefed the cabinet on Pakistan Steel Mills and presented priorities for its revival. The officials of Ministry of Finance and PSM were also present at the meeting where they reviewed the performance of the mega industrial unit and gave their input for its revival.
The cabinet with consensus ordered the constitution of a committee for the PSM on the pattern employed in the case of Pakistan Railways. It also directed the appointment of a professional and technical Chief Executive Officer (CEO) for the mills and appointments on the vacant posts on its Board of Directors (BoD). The BoD of the PSM is consisted of 12 members. At present, however, the board has nine members.
In order to meet the financial losses of the mills, she said the government had already given two packages worth Rs 30 billion. But its turnaround required organisational and professional reforms based on long-term strategy. Under a better business plan, the Prime Minister had given directives for the appointment of a professional and technical CEO within a period of one week and appointment of the board of directors with a view to converting the PSM into a profitable institution.
According to the Information Minister, the credit of giving identity to the province and renaming it as Khyber Pakhtunkhwa goes to President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani and all coalition partners of the government. She said that for the first time in the history of the country, federation itself had come to the province. The purpose of the meeting of the federal cabinet in the province was to recognise the provincial autonomy and expression of resolve for taking initiatives for the provision of all facilities and resolution of issues.
In the meeting, she said that the Governor and Chief Minister, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were especially invited to discuss the agenda of the federation in the province and decide priorities for the future. The cabinet discussed a seven-point agenda and as per tradition reviewed the implementation of the decisions taken in previous meetings. The Wednesday''s meeting, she said, reviewed the implementation of the decisions regarding Finance Division. The cabinet had taken as many as 114 decisions. Of these, 100 had been enforced while the remaining 14 would be implemented soon.
The cabinet gave approval to decisions taken in the Economic Co-ordination Committee (ECC) meeting. The Information Minister said the cabinet reviewed Consumer Price Index (CPI). In the meeting, Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Ameer Haider Khan Hoti accepted that the stability in prices of essential items and their availability to people were the responsibility of the provincial government. However, she said the Prime Minister had assured equal facilitation in this regard to help solve the problem.
CPI numbers for November 2011, came as a pleasant surprise with year-on-year inflation for the month showed an increase of just 10.19 percent - a figure last recorded in October 2009. The Prime Minister had underscored the need for bringing it to a single digit, she said. The prices of 19 items increased while of 10 items decreased last month. The Prime Minister further directed Secretary Commerce arrest the rising trend in prices of essential items.
The cabinet also ratified technical assistance agreements recently signed with Brazil and Egypt to prepare more priorities in that regard. An important decision taken during the cabinet meeting was related to 270 million Saudi Riyal loan for rehabilitation of infrastructure facilities including road network in the militancy and military operation affected areas in Fata and Malakand Division.
She said the convening of federal cabinet meetings in the federating units would contribute towards efforts aimed at identifying problems and seeking their solution in public sector institutions on a better footing. She said the revival of problems of state corporations such as PIA and Pakistan Railways in weekly cabinet meetings would help government initiate measures for their solution to enable them to stand on their own feet and convert them into profitable entities.