HARIPUR, Jan 31: President of All Pakistan Federation of Labour (APFOL) Lala Ehsan Qureshi has said that unless sick industries are revived, the goal of economic turnaround would remain elusive.

He was speaking to reporters at his office here on Monday. The labour leader termed the incentives for foreign investors announced by Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz in Belgium as 'ill-conceived' and 'a step towards strengthening the grip of multinationals in Pakistan'.

He said that over 5,000 industrial units had been closed in the country while many others were on the verge of closing down, but the government was running after foreign investment instead of reviving the sick units.

Mr Qureshi said that due to a slump in the industrial sector economic activities were slowing down, increasing poverty even further.