KARACHI: Revival of sick industries is necessary to give a boost to our sagging economy, said Pasban Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman and Pakistan Qaumi Ittehad (PQI) Vice Chairman Altaf Shakoor here.
He said non-performing state-owned entities are wasting billions of rupees of the taxpayers’ money which is a huge leakage of precious budgetary funds. He said there is also a large number of other sick industries that are either closed down or being run in losses due to various reasons.
He said a foolproof plan should be made to revive the sick industries including the SOEs to save precious funds on one hand and to spur our national economy on the other.
Giving example of the largest steel making unit in the country, Pakistan Steel Mills, he said successive corrupt political governments deliberately ruined this profit-giving industrial complex to complete the agenda of vested interests. He said if the loss-making KESC could be salvaged and turned into a profit-earning entity in the shape of the Karachi Electric (KE), the Pakistani Steel Mills could also be revived under a competent and professional management. He said that it is an open secret that real estate mafia of Pakistan wants to sell precious lands of the PSM after its so-called privatization for the peanuts.
He said in fact it is not the job of governments to run business and industry, but if the government really wants to run the SOEs in profit, they should be run in a professional manner without involvement of party and political considerations.
He said the revival of the PSM would give jobs to thousands of people, besides helping economy, as steel-making in the mother of all industries. He said we can’t fight joblessness without a fast paced industrialization.
Altaf Shakoor said costly fuel and heavy taxation have broken the backbone of industry in Pakistan. He alleged that the government is running economy on the dictation of the international lenders like International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. He reminded that no any country in the world has ever improved it economy on the costly loans of these lenders that attach difficult terms and conditions to their loans, now called ‘pre actions’.
He said similarly there is a need to manage the PIA in a professional manner to end its huge losses. He said in fact political appointments of unnecessary extra staff doomed both the PIA and Pakistan Steel Mills.
He said like public service commission, there should be a professional body to monitor recruitment process in all state-owned enterprises.
Altaf Shakoor demanded to establish two industrial corridors along Karachi-Hyderabad (M-9) motorway and Karachi-Keti Bunder highway on priority. He said if these industrial corridors are established, they would create millions of new jobs besides reducing pressure of influx of economic migrants to already overcrowded megacity, Karachi.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2022