Government’s antics
The government’s secretiveness combined with an informal style of governance continues to cause it embarrassments. Attempts being made to change the status of the PIA Corporation to PIA Company Ltd have given birth to acrimony and social unrest without resolving the issue. The government had enough time last year to create a consensus through talks with the opposition and the PIA Trade Union. Instead it gave an undertaking to the IMF to sell the national carrier to a strategic investor by June 2016. It then hastily issued a presidential ordinance to implement the decision. The Senate however struck down the ordinance through a resolution signed by 52 Senators from across the aisle. Even now instead of sorting out the matter through talks, the government intends to change the status of PIA through a resolution in a Joint Session of Parliament. The PML-N has enough majority to achieve the objective by steamrollering the opposition. But then it will have to grapple with the PIA Employees Union.
The PIA protests which were continuing since the promulgation of the ordinance have now turned into a strike. The Union closed down the airlines’ booking offices in Karachi, Lahore and other major cities from Monday and has threatened to stop the flights from February 2. The government could foil the strike by recourse to the state’s coercive machine. However, the simmering tensions would send a negative message to the prospective investors. Will the government follow a similarly tortuous and divisive process to privatise the Steel Mills?
The best way out is still to hold talks with the opposition and the Trade Union. The government claims it cannot afford to inject Rs6 billion every month to PIA. Many think the only way out is privatisation. If the opposition has another practicable suggestion to make the PIA efficient and profitable, it should also be thoroughly probed. Political dialogue and public discussion can lead to better results than secrecy combined with an informal and arbitrary style of governance.
The suggestion of the Editorial is very reasonable but enough water has drained under the bridge. The Employees have a genuine right to defend their job but the Unions should not black-mail and threaten to take the protest inside the Airports. An article in an English daily yesterday pointed out that PIA, which is in loss of billions a month, has a ratio of 700 employees per plane against International standard of 120. Emirates Airline, one of the most profit earning Airlines around, has a ratio of 220 employees per plane. Those who served the political Masters to enroll 'parchi' employees to please them for personal benefits, should be taken to task and awarded examplary punishment so it does not happen again.
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