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The cash-strapped Pakhtunkhwa government, led by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), stunned everyone when it recently announced plans to buy Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) from the federal government.
PIA, once a prestigious airline, has been running at a loss for several years, and the federal government of Pakistan has decided to privatize the national carrier. However, the first attempt at privatization failed when all bidders withdrew from the bidding process.
The government had set a minimum price of Rs. 85 billion for the sale of 60% of PIA’s shares, but only one of the six bidders offered Rs. 10 billion, leading to the collapse of the privatization process.
Soon after the federal government’s failure to privatize the airline, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister Ali Amin Gandapur announced that his provincial government was willing to buy PIA.
This announcement came at a time when Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is facing a severe economic crisis. The provincial government has reportedly struggled to pay the salaries of its employees due to financial constraints, and the province is burdened with a debt of Rs. 1,600 billion—a debt much higher than that of any other province in Pakistan.
Given this situation, a key question arises: How will the cash-strapped province manage to pay Rs. 85 billion or more for 60% of PIA’s shares?
Now, sources reveal that the Pakhtunkhwa government plans to buy PIA by demanding that the federal government pay the amount it owes in electricity dues to the province.
It is important to note that the federal government has owed the province Rs. 1,500 billion in power dues for quite some time. Despite repeated demands from the provincial government for payment, the federal government has not yet taken any action.
