Economy columnist Lumir Abdixhiku writes today about the privatisation of Kosovo Post and Telecom saying that the justifications provided by the economy minister Besim Beqaj for the sale of 75% of the company’s shares lack “minimum convincing power” with the official line being, “believe it or not”, that the investors are registered in western countries.
This reasoning, according to Abdixhiku, is insulting and resembles a Kosovo anecdote regarding sale of used and imported cars where the sellers claim that the car for sale “was owned by an elderly woman in Germany” to try and present it as being rarely used and hence, in a good condition and quality. This argument does not meet even the basic criteria of privatisation objectives, he adds.
The company that bought PTK, says Abdixhiku, has nothing to do with telecom and is an investment fund whose primary goal is to return investments to individual shareholders. “Investment funds are not even considered seriously as companies; hence the term ‘fund’”, writes Abdixhiku.
The buying of PTK by an investment fund will have two certain outcomes. The first is that the privatisation process will not bring and structural changes or the experience of the private sector in the field of telecom and second, the fund will transfer assets the moment it realizes its goal, estimates Abdixhiku.
