AT a time when the masses are struggling to put two decent meals on the table, the scale of fiscal malfeasance and mismanagement at state-owned enterprises, and the resultant costs borne by the exchequer, sting like nothing else. Speaking on Sunday at an exhibition in Lahore, Privatisation Minister Abdul Aleem Khan revealed that PIA’s losses have now ballooned to Rs830bn, or around $3bn. Once the pride and glory of Pakistan, the airline has been haemorrhaging so much money lately that it boggles the senses just trying to put its losses in perspective. Recent estimates suggest the national flag carrier has been bleeding about Rs13bn every month. This means that for every second its privatisation is delayed, PIA loses enough money to feed the average Pakistani household for an entire week, and the loss incurred for every minute the airline functions could be used to cover the monthly stipend for 30 families under the Benazir Income Support Programme.

Another SOE that was similarly emblematic of abject mismanagement and malfeasance is now officially considered “a piece of scrap”, with officials conceding that its industrial assets are “worthless in the current era”. A few weeks ago, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Industries and Production was informed that Pakistan Steel Mills’ gas supply was disconnected at the end of June to avoid further losses, and that its real estate assets are being parcelled out to various stakeholders. It seems that after years of failed attempts to turn the PSM around, all that is left is bones for the vultures to pick. The entity has become a tragic example of what happens when the right decisions are not executed at the right time. With that in mind, it is hoped that the PIA privatisation goes through as announced soon, and that its resources, or whatever is left of them, are put to good use by a new, competent management with a vision.

Published in Dawn, August 13th, 2024