The federal government once again has started a struggle for PIA privatization; before that, in a previous attempt, only a single investor submitted a bid of ten billion, which was very low as expected.
According to the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Privatization, for investor attraction about PIA privatization, the federal government has removed the 18% GST on the purchase of new airplanes. The committee stated that after the concerns of the government, the IMF approved the removal of this tax.
The committee was briefed that Pakistan International Airline’s total outstanding liability amounts to almost PKR 45 billion, including PKR 26 billion payable to the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) in different taxes, PKR 10 billion to the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), and the remaining amount in pension liabilities.
Furthermore, the committee also said that the unnecessary assets are not included in the PIA privatization process, but for this task, a consultant has been appointed as per a separate policy.
For this whole process, the committee has considered different options for the Cabinet Committee on Privatization (CCoP) about non-essential assets of Pakistan Airlines. However, the committee also discussed the Privatization Commission (Amendment) Bill 2024 and elevated objections to certain requirements.
Additionally, the committee required an explanation from the Ministry of Law on whether PM Shehbaz has ever been given permission to make PIA privatization decisions individually instead of through the cabinet.
Moreover, the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Privatization also discussed the privatization of electricity distribution companies (DISCOs) and was informed that, in the first phase, the power companies of Islamabad, Faisalabad, and Gujranwala are being considered for privatization.
