We already live in a world where some of our necessities are privatized and likewise controlled by the government, in my country, for instance, there are public schools owned by the government and private schools owned by individuals or groups of people. There is no doubt about these schools having distinct qualities, which puts them on both good and bad sides. If more important needs like roads and water are now being privatized, definitely there would also be advantages and disadvantages, which I will be further elaborating on in this post.
The Advantages of Privatization
Privatization as scary as it sounds to most people isn't entirely bad, from experience on my side, being a student of private schools most of my life, One good thing about privatization is the constant consciousness of their owners to feel motivated to improve the quality or condition of their roads and water in this aspect, as these would be their source of income, as not improving these conditions would directly impact their income.
So there would be a guarantee of better-maintained roads, no traffic, and our water would be clean always as well as reducing water-borne diseases. You know how privatized companies are all always on about gaining more income, so we can expect them to keep investing in new projects or infrastructure, such as flyovers, bridges, more improved water treatment, which is an additional improvement in our needs as well.
The Disadvantages Of Privatization
However, there are also several downsides to privatization. One of which is the
high cost of providing these needs to the public, thereby making their services, water, and roads, in this case, unaffordable to low-income earners, thereby leading to inequalities in the provision of these services. For example, low-income households may be forced to pay higher water prices, which could lead to a decrease in their overall standard of living. Private organizations do not care about the public interest, they are more concerned about their profits, also since there is no accountability to anyone after all it's their investment, and they are free to do as they like, and may not be subjected to some level of scrutiny as public institutions would have been.
As for the government establishment, there is transparency to some extent, as the public has the freedom to voice out their complaints when their needs are not met, also government providing these necessities sort of creates a balance to be affordable for all, whether you a high-income earner or low.
The major downside is just the low quality in providing these necessities which is evident in our bad roads and unclean water in most of the nation.
In my own opinion, I believe the private sector should be allowed to play a role in managing some parts and not given a monopoly in providing these necessities so that those who can afford them can go ahead patronizing them, while others can still opt for the government-provided services.
All images used in this post are mine.