THE government is facing financial uncertainty. The finance minister is trying very hard to reduce costs and increase revenue to help reduce the budget deficit for the next year.

The government can save Rs25 billion every year and also create extra revenue by privatising the Pakistan Steel Mills.

The Steel Mills was privatised by the Musharraf-led government in 2006, but the Steel Mills workers union blocked the sale in the Sindh High Court, and then the Supreme Court in its decision declared the privatisation as void.

Since that time the government has paid more than Rs25 billion every year to the Steel Mills, while it has managed to increase its production to only 17 per cent in the last five years.

Ironically, the company that had bought Pakistan Steel Mills was a Saudi Arabia-based company called Al-Tuwairqi Group of Companies. When the company was not given the Pakistan Steel Mills, they instead invested their money in creating another plant called the Tawairqui Steel Mills Limited (TSML), which during this time achieved more than 85 per cent production and has established a new steel mill in Pakistan.

TSML is currently supplying 20 per cent of Pakistan’s steel requirement, while Pakistan Steel Mills is supplying zero per cent.

This clearly shows that Pakistan Steel Mills should have been privatised in 2006. The Supreme Court decision to declare this privatisation null and void has cost the people of Pakistan Rs150 billion in the past six years alone.

Now that the appeal in Supreme Court for the case has been retracted by the Privatisation Commission, the government should make an extra effort to privatise or close down this white elephant to help save Pakistan.

SHAHRYAR K. BASEER Peshawar