ISLAMABAD : The federal government seems inclined to handover Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) , Pakistan’s major industrial unit to BAO Steel Group of China, without going through a transparent process to assess the value of the asset or even without appointing a financial advisor for the transaction to get his professional report on total value of the plant and land to be given to the ‘investor’ with the plant .
A technical team of BAO Steel Group of China had secretly visited PSM in Karachi between June 16 and June 19, last . The visit and purpose both were not shared with any of stakeholders of the PSM. Rather , no technical expert of the PSM was called in to brief BAO Steel Group’s technical team so that its visit remains a secret.
Finance minister , Miftah Ismail, as a part of the plan to hanover PSM to this Chinese public sector group, had directed to the Cabinet Committee on Privatisation (CCoP) last week to prepare a legal framework for offering PSM to the investors , most probably, BAO Steel Group of China on the pattern of Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL). In Musharraf’s time , Pakistan had handed over PTCL to UAE with management after selling its 26% shares. PTCL was one of the major fraudulent deals made to deprive Pakistan of its golden asset through shady privation process . Having full picture of the loss caused to the state of Pakistan by those who made shady deal of PTCL, now PMLN government is secretly working with BAO Steel Group of China to handover it the golden industrial asset of Pakistan.
PSM is the worst victim of red tapism . It was making significant profit and meeting Pakistan’s growing steel demand by 2006. Then onus fell on it and a powerful corrupt gang led by, Riaz Lal Jee , a Karachi based steel industrialist and a known front man of Pakistan People Party (PPP) top leader unleashed an unending era of corruption and looting in the Pakistan Steel Mills. Riaz Lal Jee and company made hundreds of billions at the cost of PSM and turned this Pakistan’s golden industrial asset into a ruin . The gang of Riaz Lal Jee destroyed PSM for two objectives : To plunder money by over invoicing raw material and buying its finished products without any competition at desired price and sell it in the open market to make windfall profit: To bring it to a stage where PSM becomes irrelevant or a bleeding unit to justify its closure and then make it saleable as a non functional unit at through away price to some desired group.
Of course , Riaz Lal Jee and company could not plunder PSM unless it had blessing of PPP top leadership . NEWSMAN sources confirmed that Riaz Lal Jee and his family plundered PSM for years as it was a front face of PPP top leadership.
“Every Tom and Jerry in steel sector knows Riaz Lal Gee was a front man of PPP top leader”, a Karachi – based steel industrialist divulged in a background interview with NEWSMAN.
In 2006, an Indian steel sector giant had attempted to buy PSM through a fixed privatisation process. A consortium of some local stock marketier was facilitating Indian steel giant to buy PSM at almost negligible price . PSM is a strategic asset of Pakistan . It has a production capacity of around 1.5 million tons per day. India and China know the significance of PSM and want to take over this golden industrial unit of Pakistan, but none of Pakistani rulers ever realised that PSM was a great national asset and it , instead of keep bleeding and causing huge financial loss to the National kitty, needs to be made functional . According to audited accounts of the PSM , it caused loss of $ 12 billion to the state since its partial closure in 2010 and complete closure in 2014. Its loss added $ 2 billion in Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf (PTI ) rule .
Pakistan Steel Mills Workers’ Union is acting as a whistleblower since 2006. It had moved the court against shady sell off of the PSM in 2006. Had Pakistan Steel Mills Workers Union not raised the voice against shady deal of PSM before the Supreme Court of Pakistan it would have gone to Indian steel sector giant through its front men cum investors .
Pakistan Steel Mills Workers’ Union is running from pillar to post to let the rulers of this country understand that selling PSM or handing over its management to any foreign country was against the national interest. Since 2006 , It is giving assurances to every government that PSM could be made functional with local manpower and financial resources , but its suggestions available with the concerned ministries/ divisions are not being considered to protect the national interest. None of the federal governments gave any heed to the proposals submitted by the PSM workers’ union. The decision makers’ negative attitude has created sense of utter disappointment to the PSM workers’ union.
Talking to NEWSMAN by phone from Karachi on Sunday , convener of PSM Stakeholders Group , Mumraiz Khan, said “We are demanding inquiry into loss caused to PSM in the last one and half decades and nobody among decision- makers was listening to our demand”.
Mumraiz Khan repeated PSM Stakeholders Group’s proposal that the workers union has technical expertise and can arrange funds to run PSM and turn it again into a profit-taking entity .
Ignoring of PSM Stakeholders Group’s proposal is highly unfortunate .
Will Mr Miftah come up with a justification of ignoring the PSM Stakeholders Group’s proposal submitted to the Industries ministry to make the mill functional without any foreign loan or he will keep pushing the plan to simply give away big industrial asset of Pakistan to BAO Steel Group of China?.
Mr Miftah should also go through the file of PSM to know as to why Supreme Court of Pakistan struck off sell off of PSM in 2006.
