KARACHI:
To protect the country from debt default, the government has decided to sell national assets to foreign countries to attract external investment and encourage business activity. The Cabinet approved the Inter-Governmental Commercial Transactions Ordinance 2022 to bypass all the procedures for selling national assets. The government has also barred the courts from entertaining any petition against the sale of the assets and shares of the government companies to foreign countries.
In the first phase, the government wants to sell the shares of Mari Petroleum and Oil and Gas Development Company Limited at a low market price compared to their book values. It has also obtained the authority to sell the land of the two LNG-fired power plants to a foreign country along with their machinery. It is a dangerous decision to sell high-value, profitable and critical assets to foreign countries, especially when these assets are undervalued, generate recurring income, and provide services that are essential for the country’s progress. Also, these assets can be used to obtain loans easily.
If the government wants to sell assets, it should sell non-essential or loss-making companies like Pakistan Steel Mills to foreign countries so that they can be reformed and converted into profit-making and job-creating companies. Therefore, I request the government to stop the sale of essential government organisations and take back this ordinance that bypasses all the rules and procedures.
Shahryar Khan
Peshawar
Published in The Express Tribune, July 28th, 2022.
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