Economy Minister Scorns Divestment Procedures

The Economy Minster Farhad Dejpasand says most of the properties divested by the government have merely resulted in change in ownership and in practice the government continues to exercise control over them. 
In a talk with the semi-official Tasnim News Agency, Dejpasand in a rare rebuke took issue with divestment schemes in which the government transfers ownership in lieu of its ballooning debts. 
Transferring government ownership of state companies in exchange for repaying debts account for 15% of the total government's divestment. This cannot be considered privatization per se, he said.
"Divesting assets in lieu of debts did not result in the reorganization of management because the majority of government assets were transferred to legal entities, which directly or otherwise, are indirectly controlled by the government. Almost 15% of the divestments were made in this manner. This is an economic plague.”