The PIA privatization ordinance is unlawful and unjustified:Senator Sirajul Haq

Lahore: Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Senator Sirajul Haq, has said that the PIA privatization ordinance was unlawful and unjustified and must be immediately withdrawn.

In a press statement here, he said the rulers were playing with the nation’s future only to carry on their present luxuries. He said that the PIA was being privatized on IMF dictation and it would open  new doors of corruption and nepotism.

Sirajul Haq said that the rulers had plans to sell out as many as 68 national institutions including the Pakistan Steel Mills, OGDC, Pakistan Railways and important persons within the government had their eyes on these institutions and the process of privatization would not be transparent.

He said that most of these institutions owned landed property and other precious assets worth billions and the rulers were going for their privatization to oblige their relatives and party workers.

Sirajul Haq said that the government was required to set up new institutions to create job opportunities while the Pakistani rulers were selling out existing national institutions on throw away prices. He said the JI would full support the workers protest against such privatization.

He said that in the PTCL, there were around 62000 employees before privatization and the corporation was earning profit of Rs. 14 billion per annum. He said that after privatization of the PTCL, as many as 44,000 employees were sent home and the national exchequer received only Rs. 4 billion from the sale whereas land and other assets worth billions were handed over to the buyer.