Islamabad: In a second time in a week, the Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has taken over the helm of Cabinet Committee on Privatization Affairs (CCOP) and removed Finance Minister Ishaq Dar as head of it.
The newly constituted committee which came into being after the swearing in of PM Abbasi and his new cabinet will now only have six member which would include its Chairman. The CCOP being headed by the PM will be the first instance in over 10 years will be headed by the head of state.
Ishaq Dar, who was removed as head of the powerful Economic Coordination Committee (ECC) last week is mired in legal troubles and is being investigated by National Accountability Bureau (NAB) for holding wealth beyond his means.
It is ironic for Dar, who till three weeks ago was one of the most influential men in the previous PM’s cabinet, now sees him being sidelined as PM Abbasi takes control of key decision-making committees.
CCOP is responsible for authorizing and taking decisions on the sale of government assets. During the time of ex-PM Nawaz Sharif, the CCOP had authorized the sale of its stakes in dozen government-owned entities worth Rs$1.7b.
Since the initiation of the privatization policy in the 1990’s, the finance minister has always had a key role in the CCOP and in finalizing the sale prices of public-owned organizations.
Neither the Chairman of the Privatization Commission hasn’t been included in the members list of the newly reconstituted CCOP. No special invitation is being provided to Dar and among the invitees are: Ministers of State for Petroleum and Power, Chairman Board of Investment (BOI), Chairman Security and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP), Governor State Bank of Pakistan and secretaries from every economic ministry.
