The Supreme Court on Tuesday expressed grave concern over the non-appointment of chairman Pakistan International Airlines.
A three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammd Chaudhry hearing the petition of PML-N leaders regarding the corruption in PIA, said that three months have passed but still the government had not appointed PIA chairman. “The authorities themselves pushing the flag carrier to destruction as nobody is serious to run the affairs of PIA even today,” he added. MarviMemon and Zafar Iqbal Jhagra, the leaders of PML-N, in August 2012 had moved a petition in the Supreme Court, seeking direction to investigate into the affairs of the PIA in depth to identify corruption, mismanagement, inefficiencies and lack of competent staff.
Deputy Attorney General Attique Shah informed the bench that the federal government in light of the Supreme Court order in order to maintain transparency had hired an HR firm for the appointment of PIA chairman, that have selected three andi dates, but out them two are foreign nationals. The court said that when the parliamentarians could be disqualified for having dual nationality then how could the PIA chairman be a foreign national as so many security issues attached with the post. The chief justice said that they have passed a judgment on matter and the PM Advisor on Civil Aviation had to quit his post due to dual nationality. The chief justice said that it was coming out in media that the federal government has a plan to privatise PIA under the deal with IMF.
He inquired whether the government with the approval of Council of Common Interests can privatise it? The CJP said: “Deliberately attempts are being made to run down the PIA so that it could be sold to a single bidder at a throwaway price.” He said that the government should know that the PIA is the national asset, which belongs to the people of Pakistan, and not the government asset. The Supreme Court was informed that presently the PIA’s net asset value in negative 200 per cent. Justice Jawwad S Khawaja remarked that if today PIA’s asset value is minus 200 per cent then next year it would be minus 300 per cent. The court on the request of the deputy attorney general adjourned the case for 10 days. -Nation
