Imaginary privatisation
THE important institutions of the country are suffering from losses, the country is stuck in debt and the people are going through the torment of hunger and poverty but if the bank accounts of the rulers overflow day by day then such a country is deemed pathetic.
Every coming government before to power has been promising to bring the loss-making institutions out of the deficit and to sell the institutions that cannot be revived yet in power, its focus is not on reducing the losses of national institutions but on selling profit-making institutions to the desirable people at degradable prices.
During the previous Muslim League (N) regime, a private bank was sold for less than office furniture.
Once again the deficit of national institutions is being revealed and the fear of excessive privatization is being expressed by the absolute ruler.
Most of the country’s institutions are in disrepair but some large scale institutions are also affected that their recovery is not possible and these institutions are becoming a burden on the national treasury.
The Minister of State Finance Minister Ayesha Ghos has also revealed in the meeting of the Senate Standing Committee that most of the 201 state-owned enterprises in the country are a burden on the national treasury but it has not been told how the profit-making enterprises suffered losses and who is responsible for this?
Despite millions of claims in every period of power, no government has been successful in restoring these institutions because the interests of the people in the government are affected, they are more suited to privatization than to the rehabilitation of institutions.
Undoubtedly, the self-interested mafia in the government is responsible for the destruction of the profitable institutions of the country and on the other hand, it is buying the loss-prone institutions at a low price and no one can lay a hand on this mafia because its roots are strong in the House of power.
As long as such people remain in power, the institutions will continue to suffer losses. All the claims of the government are to fool the people although if the government leadership wants, the loss-making institutions can be made profitable as the coalition leadership is all businessmen and all their own businesses are profitable but they are not ready to make the national institutions profitable.
What is such a task in the world that cannot be made possible? Revival of institutions is also a similar task and there are wide examples of China, Japan, Korea, Taiwan and Malaysia rather China and Japan have now joined the developed countries but if we take the example of Malaysia, we can stabilize our economy by developing the national institutions of our country by adopting the principles of Mahathir Muhammad for its development.
However, it was Mahathir Muhammad who sacrificed his politics for the development of his country.
He left the government with honour by putting the country on the path of development while our rulers can stake everything to get power and everything to stay in power.
Pakistan’s national institutions are the integral capital of national life. These institutions cannot be cut from the national body.
Global investment vultures are hovering over Pakistan to scratch Pakistan’s financial institutions and the mindset of the rulers is also the same as that of the International financial institutions.
Instead of spending billions of dollars on the most expensive projects, the government should make the sick units healthy, profitable and protect the national assets as this would lead to the prosperity of the country and the employment of a large number of people.
—The writer is a regular columnist, based in Lahore.
