Selling out the profit-giving public organisations and properties on a very meagre price is a crime that would not be tolerated as such attempts meant for vested interests does not serve the public interest. This was said by Dr Khawaja Sarmad, a veteran economist and reformist while addressing the senior faculty of the University of Agriculture Faisalabad here in New Syndicate Hall on Tuesday morning.
Dr Khawaja Sarmad in his lecture on "privatisation; myths and realities" dispelled the five myths of privatisation in Pakistan, and said that good governments always looked for doing business as they had experiences, infrastructure and trained and galvanised manpower but in Pakistan some magicians striving hard to first malign the performance of public organisations by deputing their own agents on key positions and then pave the way for privatisation on the name of debt payment and poverty eradication but not a single penny was spent on the said objectives during the last one decade.
He put a question and urged the participants to raise that who get benefit from the policies and allocations of privatisation. Dr Sarmad said during one decade the government had privatised 167 public companies against 5.7 billion dollars out of which 1.5 billion dollars were given back to the buyers, saying they paid more than the market price, 1.2 billion were spent on privatisation commission on advertising and holding road shows around the world and rest amount was paid for the purchase of 18 F16, and left nothing for debt return and poverty eradication.
He maintained that OGDCL was a profitable public enterprise as it used to contribute about 80 to 90 billion rupees annually in the national exchequer which was more than the total federal budget of health and education but magicians sitting in the government trying their utmost to sell it out aiming at meeting their vested interests.
He said there was absolutely no need to privatise Pakistan Railways and Steel Mill as they could be revived provided that if a good leadership takes the reins in hand and run the business in a transparent manner.
Dr Sarmad said that in France, top world ranking organisations were state-owned and running their business successfully, adding that globally 1/5th of the stock companies were public companies which was a testament of their worth and capabilities.
Dr Sarmad said that he started four science schools on community participatory philosophy at Muzzafar Gardh as the community needed to donate land and generate 40 percent resources in the rural areas and vowed to open 50 more schools in the province besides looking after 10 Rozgar (sewing) centres in Faisalabad for young women from working families. He urged the youth to help in meeting the challenge of educating the children of neglected areas.
Earlier, welcoming the guest speaker, UAF Vice Chancellor Professor Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan (SI) said that UAF scientists earned more than 200 research projects worth 1,667 million rupees on competitive grounds and going to a vibrant partner of five years USAID programme of Centre of Advanced Studies in Agriculture and Food Security worthy 45 millions that would enable the varsity for executing faculty/student exchange and faculty development programmes. He said that UAF was the first public organisation whose 50 percent faculty remained overseas for R&D activities round the year.
Dr Iqrar Ahmad Khan said UAF was very much deep rooted in the community with its numerous outreach programmes of festivals, Kisan Melas, exhibition, knowledge events, participatory programmes, internships, demonstration, and community college etc. He said the focus of the university management was looking ways and means how to relay the knowledge into goods and services thereby to benefit the poor farmer and revolutionise the rural landscape and economics.
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