ISLAMABAD : Jan 17 : The Pakistan Steel; Mills Corporation (PSMC) has hit by a unique scam of fake figures of accumulated losses primarily caused to this public sector strategic industrial unit due to the on-going corruption and theft of moveable assets.
The restated figures of accumulated losses lack authenticity and reliability and it makes the entire working of the Finance Department dubious.
According to annual audited financial report submitted by M/s Crowe Husain Chaudhary & Co to PSMC management and already approved by its board, suggest that the accounts of the mills from 2013 to 2022 have been restated. The term restated suggests that the audited figures of loss incurred to PSMC between 2013 and 2022 were fudged to show less losses. This revelation has exposed the entire scam involving financial health PSMC’s for the last around decade. Even the restated figures of PSMC suggest that the accumulative losses of the mills jumped from Rs 95 billion in 2013 to Rs 334 billion in 2022. This loss to PSMC is an on-going process and there is hardly any action on this deploring state of affairs of the prestigious industrial unit of Pakistan. The process of looting the resources of PSMC is continuing without any break for years. The ministry of Industrial and Production is totally indifferent to sorry state of affairs of PSMC.
The Stakeholders Group’s efforts to make the Baboos of the ministry of Industries and Production that the loss incurred to PSMC is a loss of Pakistan and its people who pay taxes have remained ineffective. The Stakeholders Group has brought the issue of unauthentic figures of accumulative losses of PSMC into the notice of top baboos of ministry of Finance and ministry of Industries and Production through a letter dated Jan 15 last with a hope that the letter may move the concerned baboos to act this time to stop PSMC bleeding and hence draining down of public money.
NEWSMAN’s investigations indicate PSMC has gone through various phases. In some phases it remained profit-making entity and in others it was turned into a loss making entity. A close look into the various phases of PSMC suggests that the mill is a very much viable rather much-needed industrial unit of Pakistan and a money hungry lobby rather gang devastated this Pakistan prestigious industrial unit into a loss-making entity. Those who struggled cunningly to turn PSMC into a loss-making entity actually eye its thousands of acre land situated in the heart of Karachi. Many attempts in the past were also made to grab land of PSMC and turn into a housing society as happened in other industrial units’ cases which were sold out to cunning mafias in the name of privatization in the past.
When contacted Mumraiz Khan, convener of Stakeholders Group said “ PSMC is making Rs 100 million loss on daily basis and we are trying to make the officials of the ministry of Industries and Production to move without any delay to act and stop draining down of the national resources”.
One the issue of restated accusative figures of losses of PSMC, Mumraiz Khan said this is a case of serious concern and being stakeholders of the mill we want a correction in this regard to ensure that the government departments make any future decisions regarding PSMC on the basis of actual data.