HYDERABAD, Oct 7: Federal Privatization and Investment Minister Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh has said bureaucrats cannot run industrial units which has made their privatization inevitable as the country is incurring a loss of Rs90 billion per annum.

Speaking as the chief guest at the annual dinner of the Hyderabad Chamber of Commerce and Industry at a hotel here on Monday, he said privatization had become essential to strengthen the economy and gave an assurance that the process would be made transparent.

He said the Habib Bank, Pakistan State Oil, Faisalabad Electric Supply Company and the Jamshoro Thermal Power Station would be privatized this year.

Dr Shaikh said shares would be brought in the market to ensure public participation in the privatization process.

He said 2.3 per cent shares of the National Bank amounting to Rs500 million would be brought in the stock market and one investor could purchase shares of Rs23,000. He said the price of each share would be Rs46.

The minister observed that the Karachi Electric Supply Company was facing a huge deficit and the power tariff was also high. He said businessmen of Pakistan had to pay four times more power bills when compared to those of Bangladesh.

He accused former governments of destroying the country’s economy. He said at the time the present government took over, foreign exchange reserves of the country were only $600 million. He said no international agency was prepared to advance loans and the International Monetary Fund had fined the country $55 million.

Dr Shaikh maintained that due to economic policies introduced by President Gen Pervez Musharraf, foreign exchange deposits had increased to $11 billion and foreign investment had gone up by 65 per cent. He said if the policies were continued, the country would repay IMF loans in 18 months.

He said Saudi Arabia, Turkey and China were on the priority list of the government for investment in Pakistan.

Addressing the people of Sindh directly, he said they should change their attitude and advised the youth to prepare themselves for competitive examinations. He also asked them to concentrate on information technology. He said the strength of the people of the province in the Pakistan Army had increased.

The minister said it was not possible for the government to control prices of petrol. He said it was also not possible to provide jobs to all the people and added that the private sector should come forward to provide employment to the people.

HCCI’s newly-elected president Emad Siddiqui and former presidents Abdul Razzaq Memon and Haji Yaqoob also spoke on the occasion. Besides a large number of businessmen and senior district officers, Sindh Minister Naeem Ishtiaq, former Sindh Minister Hassan Ali Chanhio and Naib District Nazim Nawab Rashid Ali Khan also attended the function.