KARACHI, May 4: Minister for Commerce Abdul Razak Dawood has suggested to abolish the office of Director Trade Organization (DTO) if the trade bodies also give their consent in favour.

With unbridled power vested in one hand the DTO office, the minister said, historically had been a cause of corruption, therefore, either it should be scraped altogether or its power should be slashed down.

This he stated during his visit to Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association (PHMA) here on Friday evening. Before taking final decision, however, I will seek trade bodies view on the subject but personally he said, “I would like to totally scrap the DTO office.”

There is no reason that the Ministry of Commerce should have unbridled powers which go to the extent of arresting a businessman, inferred the minister towards the powers enjoyed by the DTO office which works under the ministry.

Dawood said when deregulation is going on in every segment of the economy, therefore, a businessman or a company should also be allowed to freely import and export and only be asked to submit income tax.

Similarly, he said that when there would be no DTO any number of representative bodies could be set-up in a single trade and only those would survive who would be providing best service and are run efficiently.

All this was stated by the minister with reference to the demand raised by the chairman, PHMA, Shahzad Azam Khan, in his address of welcome for granting the PHMA a status of ‘A’ class association. However, on the insistence of the PHMA chairman, the minister finally agreed to give the PHMA a status of ‘A’ class association.

However, the minister readily agreed to give proper representation to the PHMA in the proposed ‘Textile Board’ being formed to look after the affairs and issues of the textile industry as a whole.

Nevertheless, Dawood declined to waive off or even reduce the Export Development Surcharge (EDF) as demanded by the PHMA and said, “It is true it is your money lying with the government and since it is being spent on such activities which assist in improving exports, therefore, I will suggest to drop this demand.”

He further said that out of the EDF the government has set up several training institutes and there is strong demand from Lahore as well Faislabad for establishing Expo Centres which the government would be funding from this source.

Referring to another point raised by Shahzad Azam Khan, the minister said since he is not aware of the mismanagement and fraud took place when textile quota was being managed by TQMD but till he would examine and try to give relief to the aggrieved exporters.