There is a question mark regarding the ownership of Ufone. Pakistan Telecommunication Ltd (PTCL) has openly and regularly claimed that the telecom company is part of the Etisalat group, whereas the records show that the government of Pakistan was the majority shareholder of Ufone.

Ufone was established in 2001 as a subsidiary of PTCL, and after the bidding process, Etisalat got management control of PTCL in 2006 as well as its subsidiary Ufone with 26 per cent shares at $2.6 billion.

Possibly due to the impression that Ufone is an entity of the Etisalat group, the loss-making spree of Ufone was never disclosed to the public, although PTCL was legally a state-owned entity. At the same time, the attitude of the Ministry of Information Technology and Telecommunication (MoITT) has enforced the impression that Ufone was an entity of the United Arab Emirates-owned telecom company Etisalat (now named as ‘e&’).

Under the subheading ‘About Ufone’ in a press release issued by the company on August 13, 2017, it is stated, “Ufone is an Etisalat Group company with its presence in all the major cities of Pakistan.” Similarly, a press release issued on December 19, 2024, said, “Following PTCL’s........

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