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Ishaq Dar caused billions of rupees loss by halting SOEs privatisation, alleges PML-N leader

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  • Mohammad Zubair ‘disagrees’ with Dar on privatisation matters.
  • Dar proposed handing over Steel Mills to Sindh govt: ex-minister  
  • Says Dar put off PIA sell-off over opposition concerns. 

Ex-privatisation minister Muhammad Zubair held former finance minister Ishaq Dar responsible for causing a loss of billions of rupees by halting the privatisation of loss-making public sector enterprises (SOEs) during the PML-N’s 2013-2018 tenure.

In an interview with a local TV channel, Zubair alleged that the privatisation of the PIA, Steel Mills and Fesco was in the final stages when Dar stopped it and this caused a loss of billions of rupees.

He said he disagreed with several decisions of Dar regarding privatisation.

Regarding the Steel Mills privatisation, the PML-N leader said the final session of the cabinet committee on privatisation was being held when Dar proposed that the Steel Mills be not privatised but handed over to the Sindh government because then leader of the opposition Khurshid Shah of the Pakistan Peoples Party wanted that.

Zubair said he did not agree with Dar on that because he believed that such commercial entities should be run by those who were capable of running them and it was not the government’s job to run them.

He said the government had already caused massive losses by trying to run them.

The former privatisation minister said that as the cabinet committee decided to hand the Steel Mills over to the Sindh government, the federal government wrote to then Sindh chief minister Murad Ali Shah in this regard and spent around eight to 10 months in correspondence with the Sindh government, but those efforts turned out to be useless.

Zubair said the Sindh government agreed to take control of the Steel Mills on the condition that its liabilities would be retained by the federal government. Later, he added, the decision to give the Steel Mills to the Sindh government was cancelled.

Regarding the PIA, Zubair said its privatisation was discussed in multiple sessions of a parliamentary body that had representation of all parties.

He added that when it appeared that the government would go ahead with the privatisation of the PIA, Dar decided to put it off saying that the opposition parties did not believe it was the right time to privatise the PIA.

When Zubair was asked if he was stating that Dar was responsible for not privatising the Steel Mills, PIA and Fesco, he said, “It is a matter of record.”

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An investigation was “launched” into PTA’s inability to get Rs. 78 billion back from Telcos

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The PTA has reportedly been instructed to reply to NAB by July 29. According to the enquiry, the national exchequer has suffered losses as a result of the delay in collecting dues.

The PTA has been asked to provide NAB with information about any pertinent records, court proceedings, and overdue bills. The NAB Karachi has summoned the PTA officials to appear with all pertinent documentation.

All of the principle sum has to be paid by the LDI firms, according to sources. But due to judicial stay orders, the collection of dues has been impeded.

These sources further state that a steering group has been established by the Ministry of IT to supervise the issue of dues recovery.

In a previous event, the tariffs levied on importing cell phones from outside were clarified by the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA).

Contrary to what some internet reports claim, PTA clarified in response to recent news regarding the tariffs on mobile phone imports that there hasn’t been a formal decision to remove these levies in Pakistan.

the PTA.Pakistanis living abroad will be the only ones free from these levies, according to the PTA. A SIM card can be inserted and the phone restarted to temporarily register a device for non-PTA mobile subscribers.

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Weekly inflation in Pakistan increased by 0.17 percent.

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The SPI for the week under review in the aforementioned group was reported at 321.95 points, as opposed to 321.40 points during the previous week, according to the PBS statistics.

The SPI for the combined consumption group saw a 20.09 percent increase in the week under review compared to the same week the previous year.

The weekly SPI includes 51 necessary items for every spending group and 17 urban areas, with a base year of 2015–16 = 100.

The SPI for the lowest consumption category, which is up to Rs 17,732, grew by 0.08 percent from 311.97 points to 312.22 points this past week.

0.18 percent,The index of consumption for the lowest consumption groups, which are Rs 17,732-22,888, Rs 22,889-29,517, Rs 29,518-44,175 and above Rs 44,175; increased by 0.13 percent, 0.15 percent, 0.18 and 0.19 percent, respectively.

Nineteen (37.25%) of the fifty-one commodities had price increases over the week, eight (15.69%) had price decreases, and twenty-four (47.06%) had unchanged pricing.

On a weekly basis, the following commodities saw significant price decreases: tomatoes (9.19%), onions (2.14%), LPG (1.04%), bananas (0.53%), wheat flour (0.35%), potatoes (0.17%), pulse masoor (0.16%), and bread (0.05%).

Chicken (4.80%), garlic (2.01%), pulse gramme (1.87%), eggs (1.71%), beef (0.93%), gur (0.89%), pulse moong (0.84%), fresh milk (0.45%), firewood (0.23%), and cigarettes (0.12%) were among the items whose average prices increased significantly week over week.

The commodities that saw a year-over-year decline were: wheat flour (31.75%); cooking oil (13.44%); vegetable ghee 2.5 kg (10.42%); vegetable ghee 1 kg (9.85%); mustard oil (8.33%); eggs (5.82%); rice basmati broken (4.15%); and tea package (2.52%).

Gas prices for Q1 (570.00%), onions (96.01%), pulse gramme (40.39%), powered milk (39.11%), garlic (34.61%), pulse moong (29.77%), men’s sandals (25.01%), beef (23.52%), salt powder (23.28%), pulse mash (22.50%), and energy saver (17.96%) were among the commodities whose average prices increased year over year.

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The price of gold has drastically dropped in Pakistan.

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As per the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA), the cost of 24-karat gold per tola decreased by Rs 2,300, standing at Rs 250,500.

A kilogramme of 24-karat gold costing Rs1,972 less at the local market, making it worth Rs2114,763. Ten grammes of 22-karat gold had a price decrease to Rs196,866 as well.

After losing a significant $43 during the day, the rate per ounce of gold on the international market also decreased. It currently stands at $2,370.

On Thursday, the price of 24-karat silver also experienced a decline, falling by Rs60 to settle at Rs2,860 petal.

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