Divestiture Policy on Thin Ice

The government’s plan to divest its shares in state-run companies via exchange-traded funds can neither be called privatization nor a realistic move toward a market economy, says Davoud Soori, an economist.
While commending the government for its intention to reduce its role in the economy, Soori faults the divestiture methods and procedures, which allows the government to maintain its control over the divested assets even after the divestiture is complete.  
The divestiture scheme started on May 3 when the government called on the public to subscribe for units of an ETF that holds government stakes in three banks and two insurance companies.