KARACHI: Managing Director of Jerez Group, Akram Wali Muhammad has said that the government’s effort for PIA privatization has utterly failed as the seller did not know how to sell it, nor the buyer had complete data how to buy it.
He expressed these views while exclusively talking to Bol News programme “Beopar”.
He said that there is no doubt about the government has initiated the privatization process, which has been in progress for a long time but unfortunately it has not been completed yet.
"When the PIA bidding process started, there were many good bidders and we were also one of them but as we went through the process, it was realized that the seller did not know how to sell it and the buyer did not know how to buy,” observed the MD Jerez Group.
He maintained, “When you sell something, you first bring it to a good condition and then you sell it, but regrettably the answers to the bidders’ questions were not prepared, even basic queries could not have been responded such as what is the current condition of the assets and the institution? what will happen to the salaries of employees? How much capital does a bidder need to purchase it as he does not buy shares only?”
Akram opined that one needs a big capital if one wants to run an airline as per international standard and if the government has 60 percent or 30 percent shares whether the government will invest more money in it.
He questioned, “What will happen to the employees who will be laid off? Is there any relief programme for those employees? If all these questions remain unanswered, making our product so weak that none will invest in such merchandise as they have a lot opportunities to make investments."
