PIA privatisation: Asif blames bureaucracy for public sector’s decline, seeks accountability

• Privatisation will improve services of national airline: Khawaja Asif
• Minister says PIA would’ve been closed in way it was operating.
• Notes govt intends to privatise more institutions operating at loss.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, who also heads the country’s aviation sector, has held bureaucracy responsible for the decline of the public sector while lamenting that politicians are often blamed for it.

“Those responsible for the ruin of [public sector] institutions will be held accountable,” Asif said while speaking on Brackly News‘ programme “Brackly Pakistan” on Wednesday.

The minister’s remarks come in the wake of Pakistan International Airlines’ (PIA) successful privatisation bid held a day earlier where consortium led by Arif Habib Corporation emerged as the top bidder for 75% stake in the national carrier via offering Rs135 billion.

The auction marked Pakistan’s first major privatisation in nearly two decades and comes amid pressure to reform loss-making state firms under a $7 billion International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme.

Arif Habib raised its bid from Rs115 billion to Rs135 billion after the Lucky Cement Limited–led consortium increased its earlier bid of Rs101.5 billion to Rs134 billion in the second round of the open-bidding.

Arif Habib and Lucky Cement consortia advanced to the open auction stage after placing offers above the reference price of Rs100 billion, while private airliner Airblue exited the bidding after submitting an offer of Rs26.5 billion.

The government officials have said that of the amount paid for the 75% stake, 92.5% of the proceeds will be invested directly into PIA, while the remaining 7.5% — amounting to Rs10.12 billion — will be transferred to the federal government.

Speaking about the national airline’s privatisation in today’ show, Defence Minister Asif blamed former aviation minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan’s statement claiming fake credentials of pilots which had resulted in wide-ranging restrictions and adverse repercussions for the national airline during the PTI-led government in 2020.

Noting that the government retains 25% stake in the PIA, Asif said that the way airline was operating for the past four years, it would have been closed.

“Privatisation will improve the services of the national airline. There is an intention to privatise other institutions as well, which are operating at a loss,” he added, while pointing out that various distribution companies (Discos) were in loss.

Future of PTI talks

Addressing the political situation, particularly, government’s potential talks with the PTI, Asif said that Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has invited the former ruling party multiple times, however, the other side sets conditions for dialogue.

“If PTI puts its house in order, the talks can move forward,” he noted.

In addition to the defence minister’s remarks, PM’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah has in fact, cast aspersions on the possibility of parleys with the Imran Khan-founded party.

Stressing that politics and democracy progress through negotiations and that political parties should sit together and discuss relevant issues, Sanaullah recalled that the PTI founder did not respond positively to the PM Shehbaz’s invitation for talks in the past.

“The PTI founder is not doing politics; negotiations are not in his policy. No one has any authority in his party except him.

“The PTI founder does not want negotiations; he wants chaos,” the PM’s adviser remarked.

The ministers’ comments came a day after PM Shehbaz said that the talks with the PTI are possible only on “legitimate” demands and attempts at blackmail under the guise of dialogue will not be tolerated.

PM’s offer came two days after Imran, in a post on X, dismissed Mahmood Khan Achakzai’s call for dialogue and directed KP Chief Minister Sohail Afridi to prepare for a street movement.