Early implementation of Saigol's report demanded: MNAs criticise Textile Ministry

Early implementation of Tariq Saeed Saigol's report on reviving the crisis-laden textile sector was demanded by Pervaiz Malik, Member National Assembly Standing Committee on Textile, which was submitted a month ago.
Another member of the Standing Committee Yasmeen Rehman contacted by Business Recorder criticised the performance of Textile Ministry for not taking the problem seriously. However, a spokesman of the Ministry, contacted by Business Recorder, said that the Tariq Saigol's report was sent to the Prime Minister Secretariat last month and is still under consideration.
He said that industrialists are looking for a subsidised relief package encompassing power, fuel, taxes etc, whereas with the utilisation of full production capacity, they are unable to meet the export orders.
He said that textile sector has no proper marketing strategy. It is focusing on USA and Europe only and not searching for new markets. There is big market in Canada, and Japan also looks for Pakistan's textile products apart from many other countries. However, they are not even able to meet the orders from US and Europe, he added.
He said that government would definitely give some concessions to the textile sector but all their demands can not be met. He said that there is enough space for value-added textile in the international market, which is overlooked by the industrialists and thus it has not been able to produce enough value-added goods to meet the international market's demand.
On the other hand, Pervaiz Malik also a textile industrialist, while talking to Business Recorder criticised the government for mishandling the textile crisis. "The government is totally non-serious in resolving the textile crisis and wants to damage the industry," he added.
He was all against the government strategy in this regard and directly blamed Finance Adviser to Prime Minister Dr Salman Shah, who he thought, wants to ruin the textile sector, thinking it as non-viable. He said that "government wishes to give preference to trading, instead of industry".
He further said "government is listening to babus, who are behaving like professors and resolve the issue theoretically, which is not acceptable", he remarked. Stating, nothing positive is coming from the government's side to resolve the problems of the most crucial industry, which is passing through severe crisis, he added that the report submitted by Tariq Saeed Saigol, a government trusted industrialist, has not made any impression as no response is yet forthcoming.
This is an urgent matter and should have been attended on priority basis. The delay in taking any decision is coming hard on the country, which is losing its market to tough competitors like China, India and Bangladesh.
This delay would not only discourage industrialists, it would also cause irreparable damage to the industry and the nation, he added. He added, the Textile Ministry has not done anything for betterment of the textile sector and asserted that it has no say in the government and has played no useful role to meet the present day demand.
These conditions prompted him to urge merger of the Textile Ministry with the Finance Ministry and separating it from the Commerce Ministry. He was of the view that there is strong lobby in the government, which is not allowing the textile Ministry to work independently.
Answering a question that the industrialists are believed to be receiving a lot of export orders, which they are unable to meet, and are not justified in their claims of remaining non-competitive in the international market, he stated that due to heavy costs of producing value-added goods, textile sector is forced to divert to exporting yarn and manufacturing less value-added products. If the profits for value-added products were good then only the industrialists would go for its production. The close export profit ratio as of yarn keeps them at bay for producing value-added.
He pointed out that all international textile players are giving subsidies and facilitating textile sector, which is a prime source of revenue, why our government is unable to understand this simple equation. It's a big source of revenue and Pakistan's main hope to meeting the deficit.
Yasmeen Rehman MNA (PPP) and also the member of the NA body on textile apart from airing similar views about the textile sector, commented on the refund to the textile sector, which after the chaos in CBR has once again deprived the textile sector of its right.
The CBR earlier was committed to give the refund by mid-January at all costs. But after the controversial changes in the CBR's in-house wrangling, the new management has gone against it. She was also against the import of cotton yarn from India, which may have high cost of doing business.
While talking to the Business Recorder, she was critical of European Union, which is not facilitating the textile imports of Pakistan as of others, terming it non-supportive and partial attitude. She said that Ministry of textile is quite docile and its performance has not contributed to the sector, it lacks initiative, she added.
She claimed that the sector is the biggest employer of the human resource in the country, which is neglected and referred to the Chenab Textile, where recently many workers have been laid off due to on-going crisis.
Speaking about receipt of sufficient orders by the textile industry, she said that this phase is the result of recent debacle in Bangladesh, which has generated some export activity in this sector, but this is not of permanent nature and no solution to the issue.