Eighteen officers of Inter Services Intelligence (ISI), the country's premier intelligence agency, are scheduled to visit headless Pakistan Steel Mills (PSM) on October 11, 2017 for a detailed briefing on the "collapsed" entity, well-informed sources told Business Recorder.
According to the communication with PSM management, an ISI Director has conveyed that 18 officers of the Directorate "desired to visit strategic installations at Karachi to equip them with the requisite knowledge and practical understanding of intricacies involved in the management of strategic installations' and their security". Earlier, the visit had been planned for September 27.
PSM which has been run by a couple of retired Generals has been requested to include the following aspects in the briefing: (i) various technical aspects of PSM; and (ii) security procedures at the installation.
According to insiders, the non-operational entity is without any formal Chief Executive; two General Managers occupy positions of Acting Principal Executive Officers (APEOs) against seven PEOs and 24 General Manager's offices; and senior offices have been assumed by junior officers on their own after the retirement of one general manager holding three PEO offices retired on September 22, 2017.
PSM's administrative Ministry, ie, Ministry of Industries and Production (MoI&P), Privatization Commission and "unproductive" Board of Directors (BoD) are merely playing the role of observers.
According to official documents, PSM was facing a severe financial crunch from 2008-09, as a result of which the entity is only paying net cash salaries to its employees after intervals with the approval of the ECC. It was unable to pay the provident fund dues after May 2015 and gratuity dues after 2013 to the retired employees. Since then retiring employees are receiving neither provident fund nor gratuity dues leading to serious social and financial issues.
Over 4000 retired employees are waiting for their dues and about 12,000 serving employees wait every ECC meeting praying for the release of their salaries.
National Assembly Standing Committee on Industries and Production is expected to take up the issue of 3500 employees who have not yet been paid.
PSM was completed with technical assistance from the former USSR in 1985 at a cost of Rs 26 billion and was portrayed as a white elephant by the steel importers' mafia.
Insiders reveal that in a letter written to former President General Musharraf Gen. Abdul Qayyum (retd), the then Chairman PSM, described the proposed privatisation in 2005 as highway robbery.
The incumbent government appointed Lieutenant-General Zaheer (retd), supported by former Chairman Privatization, Zubair Umar in 2014 - 2015 (now Governor Sindh) and extended a bailout package worth Rs 18.5 billion at a time when PSM was struggling to produce at 41% capacity in March 2015. However, agreed production targets were never achieved.
Insiders told Business Recorder that there is a distinct possibility that a new company is established with thousands of acres of PSM land for setting up industrial zones. Two creditors' of PSM - SSGC and NBP - will have proportionate shares in the new company; and a third group of PSM creditors via the PSM employees is attempting to get a share in the new company.
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