A FEW days ago, I had a meeting with Egypt's Prime Minister Ahmed Nazif. Responding to my concerns about the ongoing privatisation of the governmental companies, the Premier confirmed that they are currently considering the best mechanism to manage State-run properties, services and hotels. The PM also emphasised that they were no longer interested in the rigid principles of privatisation. He explained that they were enthusiastic for a suggestion to invite independent managers to run the State-owned properties. Nazif believes that the new vision of privatisation would increase competition with the private sector. However, he stressed that the Government would not by any means relinquish strategic industries and companies. **The PM's emphasis had been our main concern over years, especially after privatisation was reduced to disposing of public companies and factories. I also urged that independent management belonging to local or international agencies should be empowered to run privatised companies and the owners' rights should be limited to collecting profits. **In my campaign to elaborate my point, I also said that investors should be encouraged to launch new investment projects and not to focus their interest on the existing companies. **My appeal for a re-examination of privatisation was raised after hotels sector had witnessed suspicious deals, treacherously identified as privatisation. For example, Cairo Sheraton has been sold for a price five times higher than the hotel's annual profits. Such a deal is comparable to slaughtering a gold egg-laying hen. **Also, the Cairo Meridien, which overlooks the Nile, has been closed by the new buyer, and a good source of national income has been lost. The Hurghada Sheraton is also the victim of the disastrous privatisation planned unwisely and even suspiciously. The small price (LE50 million, years ago) aroused much doubts about the integrity of the deal in the Red Sea. To make matters worse, the Hurghada Sheraton, bought about 20 years ago, remains closed. Nile Hilton survived **The Nile Hilton has successfully survived the tragic fate of other hotels after we managed to abort the conspiracy by warning that the hotel would be the victim of the biggest theft in history. I was determined to pursue my campaign to expose the suspicious deal after I came under unbearable pressure to disclose the sources of my reliable information. **Ali Abdel-Aziz, Chairman of the Holding Co. for Tourism, Hotels and Cinema, repeatedly lauded my efforts to save the Nile Hotel from the corrupt deal, in which the former buyer was offered outrageous financial terms and concessions. **During a dinner in London with the Egyptian Minister of Tourism some years ago, Abdel-Aziz explained to the minister and travel journalists the big role I had made to disappoint the dubious plans organised by the former buyer in collaboration with some officials of the holding company at that time. **In a press conference, held a few days ago, Abdel-Aziz said that they had relinquished any idea about selling the State-run hotels. He asserted that they were planning to build new hotels in coordination with sincere partners. **The Minister of Investment Mahmoud Mohieddin also appears to be enthusiastic to the new vision of privatisation in connection with Stateowned companies and factories. Mixed feelings **I took part in a press conference held last week at the Nile Hotel. The conference was organised to shed light on the two-year refurbishing and renovation of the hotel, The conference was led by Ali Abdel-Aziz; Fathi Nour, Chairman of Misr Hotels Co.; and Simon Cooper, Chairman of the Ritz Hotels. Perhaps, the press conference would be the last to take place in the hall (a former nightclub), which, for the second time, undergoes comprehensive renovation and upgrading plans. **We had lunch at the Ibis Hall, the former cafeteria, which received celebrities, famous men of letters and writers, who took part in the opening ceremony of the Nile Hilton in February 1959. Many guests were keen to have lunch at Ibis Hall after they were informed that it would be closed. **We were filled with nostalgia for the past of the place, especially after we had realised that we were bidding farewell to Ibis. On behalf of the staff members, who are the eyewitness of the past of Ibis, Nour gave a speech to the press conference, in which he expressed his deep emotions. [email protected]
