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Bolivia's Morales vows to nationalize rogue companies
AFP
LA PAZ
Petroleumworld.com 01 23 06Leftist President Evo Morales on Monday vowed to nationalize any former public company sold in the 1990s that he finds guilty of mismanagement or violating its privatization contract, after an investigation.
"If we find private companies that are not dealing fairly with Bolivian firms or are violating their privatization contracts, those companies will return to government ownership," Morales said in a report to Congress.
He said he would order preliminary investigations into any complaint and "if we discover illicit activities and investments, a (formal) investigation" by the government would be launched.
Ever since taking power a year ago as Bolivia's first indigenous president, Morales, 47, nationalized Bolivia's gas and oil resources, passed controversial land reforms and is trying to reform the constitution, amid growing unrest in Bolivia's resource-rich eastern departments.
Former president Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada between 1993 and 1997 took Bolivia down the free market path privatizing most of the country's public companies, including the oil, gas, telecommunication industries and railroads.
Most of the oil and gas was sold to 10, mostly American companies, while telecommunications went to Italy's Telecom. Three power companies were also bought up by US companies and the railroads went to Chile's Cruz Blanca firm.
Morales has said he also intends to nationalize Bolivia's mining concerns and announced the "recovery" of the Vinto ironworks, in the south Andean department of Oruro, which belonged to Sinchi Wayra, a subsidiary of Switzerland's Glencore.
The president said Vinto was privatized at "a bargain price" in 1996 by Comsur, a firm owned by president Lozada who, shortly after he was overthrown by mass demonstrations in 2003, transferred all company stocks to the Swiss company.
Lozada has been charged with genocide and economic mismanagement. He is currently exiled in the United States and Bolivia has been seeking his extradition.
AFP 22 1951 GMT 01 07
Copyright© 1999 AFP. All Rights Reserved.
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