By IANS,
Islamabad : Pakistan’s Privatisation Commission spent for its publicity campaign in the past 17 months a whopping Rs.285 million — an amount sufficient for the country’s railways to purchase nine locomotives.
Express Tribune reported Tuesday that the Privatisation Commission spent Rs.285 million on its publicity campaign, which is five times its entire budget for the current year.
Sources said the massive expenditure had been incurred since August 2009, with the monthly average coming to Rs.17.8 million.
Railways Minister Ghulam Ahmad Bilour said the money spent on publicity could have bought the Railways nine locomotives with the cost of one engine being Rs.30 million.
The money was spent out of the Privatisation Fund, which is pooled by deducting two percent of the proceeds from privatising public sector entities. This fund can only be used to meet expenses specific to the privatisation process, the media report said.
Since 1991, Pakistan has privatised 167 entities worth Rs.476.5 billion.