Nishat Group Chairman Mian Muhammad Mansha hits the gong to mark the listing of Adamjee Life Assurance on the PSX on Monday.
Nishat Group Chairman Mian Muhammad Mansha hits the gong to mark the listing of Adamjee Life Assurance on the PSX on Monday.

KARACHI: Business tycoon Mian Muhammad Mansha urged the government on Monday to hold a fire sale of state-owned entities (SOEs), especially in the banking and power sectors.

Speaking at a gong-ringing ceremony for the listing of Adamjee Life Assurance — a company of Mr Mansha-led Nishat Group — the business magnate called the losses suffered by the taxpayer-funded SOEs “unjustifiable”.

“We should immediately privatise NBP,” he said while referring to the government-owned National Bank of Pakistan. He highlighted NBP’s regulatory troubles in Bangladesh and the United States, which led to heavy fines, as grounds for its quick privatisation.

Mr Mansha rhetorically asked why private banks never faced such penalties overseas, failing to recall that poor compliance led two of the largest Pakistani banks from the private sector to wind up their New York operations in recent years.

“We’re in the middle of a transition in this country. It’s the first time I’ve realised that people think they need change. This is universal. Wherever you go, whichever region it is, whichever party it is, it is now getting into our heads that we need to put our house in order,” he said, reiterating his long-held demand for privatising electricity generation and distribution firms.

In a recent speech at the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Mr Mansha had vociferously called for normalising trade relations with India. “I thought (the speech) was going to be very controversial. But it did not turn out to be controversial at all,” he said, adding that the two countries can continue to have differences while maintaining bilateral trade.

After acquiring the insurance business, Mr Mansha said, he refused to remove the “Adamjee” name from the company out of respect for the family’s contribution to the country since Partition. The Mansha Group took over the non-life insurance provider back in 2004 in what was dubbed as the first hostile takeover in the country’s history. “I wanted the Adamjee name to continue,” he said.

Earlier, Mr Mansha hit the gong to mark the listing of Adamjee Life Assurance, which is one of the country’s 10 life insurance companies.

Published in Dawn, March 8th, 2022

Follow Dawn Business on Twitter, LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook for insights on business, finance and tech from Pakistan and across the world.

Opinion

Beefing up security

Beefing up security

The issue lies not in the sincerity and dedication of Pakistan’s law enforcement but in their capacity and access to effective surveillance equipment.

Editorial

Concerning measures
Updated 03 Nov, 2024

Concerning measures

The govt must seek political input and consensus on the changes it is seeking to make and be open about its intentions.
Short-lived relief?
03 Nov, 2024

Short-lived relief?

POLICYMAKERS must be jumping with joy. At the close of the first quarter of FY25, the budget posted a consolidated...
Brisk spread
03 Nov, 2024

Brisk spread

THE surge in polio cases has reached distressing levels with a tally of 45 last reported, after two cases emerged in...
Ultimate price
Updated 02 Nov, 2024

Ultimate price

To dismantle culture of impunity for crimes against journalists, state must ensure that perpetrators do not go unpunished.
Mastung bombing
02 Nov, 2024

Mastung bombing

INSTABILITY continues to haunt Balochistan, as Friday morning’s bombing in Mastung has shown. At least nine...
Plane speak
02 Nov, 2024

Plane speak

DESPITE all its efforts to facilitate PIA’s privatisation, it seems the government only ended up being taken for a...