Shehbaz Sharif says PIA lost Europe, US routes due to irresponsible statements by PTI govt n PIA fleet will be increased to 49 from 27 in order to steer national airline out of crisis, PM told.
LAHORE - Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif Wednesday constituted a high-level committee to work out the restructuring, reformation and revival of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA).
He was chairing a high-level meeting to discuss the matters pertaining to the PIA, according to the PM Office. The committee, headed by Finance Minister Ishaq Dar, would present its proposals and recommendations to the Federal Cabinet after Eidul Azha. The committee would also comprise Railways and Aviation Minister Khawaja Saad Rafiq, Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal, Commerce Minister Syed Naveed Qamar, Special Assistant to the PM Jahanzeb Khan and secretary aviation.
The body would deliberate on different options for the restructuring and revival of the PIA. The aviation minister briefed the prime minister about the proposed route map and reformative measures for the uplift of the national flag carrier. The prime minister appreciated the efforts of the minister for the PIA's revival.
He viewed that the PIA had the capacity to overcome the losses. The meeting was told that the number of planes in the PIA fleet would have to be increased from 27 to 49, in order to steer the airline out of the crisis.
Prime Minister Shehbaz said the PIA had lost the Europe and US routes owing to irresponsible statements by the previous government, inflicting the loss of billions of rupees. He recalled that the incompetent ministers of the previous government had victimised international investors, Chinese firms and Turkish businessmen. Calling the reformation process inevitable, the prime minister told the meeting that the PIA could only progress if run by professional and administrative experts purely on a profit-and-loss basis. The prime minister said the government was heading toward a policy mechanism in which its role would be confined to the policy-making, and facilitation of investors, businessmen and companies. Federal ministers Khawaja Saad Rafiq and Azam Nazeer Tarar, Advisor Ahad Cheema and relevant authorities attended the meeting. Federal ministers Syed Naveed Qamar, Ishaq Dar and Ahsan Iqbal, SAPM Jahanzeb Khan and others joined via video link. Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif on Wednesday spoke to the President of the Republic of Turkiye Recep Tayyip Erdogan and felicitated the government and the people of Turkiye on the auspicious occasion of Eid-ul-Adha. Reciprocating the prime minister’s sentiments, President Erdogan extended warm Eid greetings to the people of Pakistan, PM Office Media Wing said in a press release. The two leaders also reviewed bilateral relations between Pakistan and Turkiye. They agreed that the 7th Session of the High-Level Strategic Cooperation Council (HLSCC) to be held in Islamabad, would provide a leadership driven and forward oriented impetus to further strengthen the close fraternal relations between the two countries, especially in the economic domain. “Pakistan-Turkiye relationship is underpinned by abiding bonds of religion, culture and history. Regular leadership level contact remains a defining feature of this strategic partnership,” it was further added.
