Cyprus-Forum.com

[apc2010]

How long will they keep this up.........?????

[Tim Drayton]

I find myself in a quandary over this. One the one hand, I am opposed to the privatisation of the electricity board, and so support the electricity workers' action. On the other hand, I need my PC to work, and if I can't work, it means that I can't earn the money that I need to support myself, earnings which I spend on the depressed local market, and earnings on which I also pay tax to the bankrupt state.

[tsukoui]

What is the government doing trying to privatise the electricity board. Don't they know it's a natural monopoly.

[Tim Drayton]

The privatisation of the electricity board, telephone company and the ports is being imposed by the troika on the Cyprus government as part of the financial rescue package. This kind of thing has happened time and time again around the world whenever the IMF has stepped in with a rescue package, unfortunately.

[tsukoui]

The privatisation of the electricity board, telephone company and the ports is being imposed by the troika on the Cyprus government as part of the financial rescue package. This kind of thing has happened time and time again around the world whenever the IMF has stepped in with a rescue package, unfortunately.

So, Tim, what are we going to do about it? General strike? It hasn't dislodged the occupation in the North.

[Tim Drayton]

What are we going to do about it? I don't know. You tell me. As far as I can see, these crises have been cropping all around the world for the past 35-40 years, first in one place and then another, and each time the IMF comes in and demands ever more concessions in favour of global capital as part of the rescue package. So far, they have got away with it every time. Turkey was there in 2002, ten years later its economy was booming, now the next Turkish crisis appears to be looming. No doubt Turkey will then have to make even further concessions. Here, the electricity, telephone and port workers are all taking various kinds of action to oppose privatisation, and good luck to them, but I can't help feeling that the troika will get its way.

[DT.]

Privatisations are on their way and thank god for the Troika giving us an excuse to carry them out. Governments CANNOT run businesses. The stakeholders interests are never aligned.

[tsukoui]

Privatisations are on their way and thank god for the Troika giving us an excuse to carry them out. Governments CANNOT run businesses. The stakeholders interests are never aligned.

You would prefer a private monopoly where the owners are free to exploit their position to raise prices and under invest?

[Paphitis]

Privatizations have occurred in many countries not just countries under IMF assistance.

I'm talking about US, Canada and Australia specifically.

It has worked well because there is investment in utilities, and eventually it led to a competitiveness.

[Get Real!]

Privatisations are on their way and thank god for the Troika giving us an excuse to carry them out. Governments CANNOT run businesses. The stakeholders interests are never aligned.

You would prefer a private monopoly where the owners are free to exploit their position to raise prices and under invest?

Monopoly is what we’ve got now. Privatization opens up the market to competition and hopefully more competitive prices.

Mind you, in Cyprus they have a way of killing competition with price fixing as I was recently reminded of again when shopping around for a new car.

I basically sent out a request (by phone or email) for a quote for a car with the following specifications:

1.4 or 1.5ltr Engine, 5-Door Hatch, Manual Transmission, 2013 Model

A few days later the quotes started coming in from 8-10 different brand names and they all came back with the same answer… €14,???,???

If that’s not price fixing I don’t know what is!