LAHORE: A day after the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government said it was ready to purchase the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), the Punjab government led by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz on Saturday followed suit, expressing its interest in either acquiring the national carrier or establishing a new airline.

PML-N President Nawaz Sharif stated on Saturday that Chief Mini­s­ter Mar­yam Nawaz had sought his counsel on whe­ther the Punjab government should acquire the PIA or establish a new airline. “Mar­yam proposed that the Punjab government launch a new airline, Air Punjab, and I advised her to proceed with further consultations on the potential acquisition of the PIA,” Nawaz Sharif told reporters in New York.

“We could introduce a new airline that would offer direct flights from Karachi, Lahore, Pesha­war, and Quetta to New York, along with services to London, Tokyo, Hong Kong, and other international destinations,” the elder Sharif elaborated. He said the proposal was under consideration.

Nawaz Sharif also suggested that the PIA could be purchased and rebra­nded by the provincial government as Air Punjab.

Regarding PIA’s privatisation, he noted that the current bid stood at Rs10 billion, and any prospective buyer would be looking for business exceeding the investment. “It is disheartening to see that there are individuals among us who have contributed to PIA’s downfall,” he remarked.

The PML-N president also alluded to former PTI aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar, who alleged that some PIA pilots held fake licences. “Regardless of its accuracy, was such a claim appropriate for public disclosure?” he questioned. In February’s general elections, Mr Sarwar ran with the PML-N support but failed to secure a win.

PML-N spokesperson and Punjab senior minister Marriyum Aurangzeb told Dawn that discussions were ongoing regarding whether the Punjab government should purchase the PIA or establish a new airline with no final decision made yet.

According to sources, if any provincial government intends to buy PIA, it will need to consider the implications of the federal government’s agreement with the IMF. With both the KP and Punjab governments showing interest in PIA, questions are being raised as to why the federal government cannot manage the airline if it is unable to sell it to a private entity.

Like the federal government, any provincial government acquiring PIA would require substantial funds to operate an airline that is widely considered a financial burden.

The much-anticipated privatisation of PIA hit a standstill on Thursday, as the only bid fell approximately Rs75 billion short of the government’s expectations.

The Blue World City consortium submitted a bid of Rs10 billion, far below the minimum price of Rs85.03 billion set by the Privatisation Commission.

In a letter addressed to Federal Minister for Privatisation Aleem Khan a day before the bidding, KP Board of Investment and Trade Vice Chairman Hassan Masood expressed provincial government’s intent to participate in the bidding process.

The letter conveyed that, on behalf of the chief minister and the people of KP, they wished to formally register their interest in acquiring the national air carrier.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2024