State unable to run institutions: Dr Sheikh

Finance minister Abdul Hafeez Sheikh admitted that the model of running institutions by the state has failed; as is evident from collapse of Pakistan Railways, PIA, Pakistan Steel Mills and other State Owned Enterprises (SOEs) which were not run on competitive basis. Speaking at inaugural session of the international conference on competition enforcement challenges and consumer welfare in developing countries, he said government was not interfering in affairs of regulatory organisations to provide a level playing field and they have performed well outside government’s influence.The minister said government is adopting public private partnership to run SOEs so that they could be run on profitable basis. He said government has decided to run two trains; Gul train from Lahore to Istanbul and Shalimar train from Lahore to Karachi with private sector participation in operation and maintenance of cargo and passenger train services. Giving example of banking sector that government privatised in last decade, he said after privatisation banking sector has flourished in last ten years and their capacity to deliver has grown. He said growth in country’s private sector has given boost to regulatory system of the country. He praised performance of Competition Commission of Pakistan and said it helped introduce the culture of competition in different sectors. He said China, Indonesia, Korea and India, by changing their models in last two decades, have contributed enormously to growth in their economies. He said due to prudent policies; the country’s economy was showing encouraging signs of recovery. He said exports and Foreign Exchange Reserves have gone up and current account deficit has declined. He said Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) has collected Rs640 billion worth of tax during first five months with 28 per cent growth in current fiscal year. Later talking to reporters, the minister said that increase in petroleum prices was a difficult decision but said government had to pass on the impact in international markets to consumers. CCP Chairperson, Rahat Kaunain Hassan while touching upon key areas of competition law enforcement, advocacy and challenges faced by CCP in implementing competition law said that we look forward to enrich ourselves by learning about experiences of developed and other developing regimes. Speaking about performance of CCP, Rahat said despite being in its infancy it has taken significant enforcement actions. Industries that have been taken on and penalised include banks (Rs205 million), cement (Rs6.3 billion), sugar (proposed maximum penalty), LPG (Rs318 million), poultry (Rs50 million), edible oil (Rs50 million), jute mills (Rs23 million), dredging (Rs200 million), etc. International competition conference aims to examine status of competition enforcement in various jurisdictions with particular reference to emerging economies such as Pakistan. Participants of the conference are discussing five themes that include challenge for competition agencies to deal with cartels and cartels in disguise, deceptive marketing and consumer protection, lessons learnt and sharing of country experiences in advocacy and enforcement, state aid and distortion in competition, and public procurement and collusive bidding affecting consumer welfare. Local panelists include representatives of consumer right associations, business community, CSF, and government of Pakistan. Conference participants include senior management members of corporate firms, legal community, academia, state-owned enterprises and government of Pakistan.