Staff Reporter
Islamabad
Pakistan’s airports are to be outsourced to international firms and a committee to overlook the relevant process has been formed under Aviation Minister Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Information and Broadcasting Minister Senator Shibli Faraz said Tuesday.
Apprising the media of the developments during the Cabinet meeting, Faraz said the first agenda point was a discussion on airports across the country and how to outsource them. The government, he said, was looking for “any international firm that has experience in operating and managing airports”.
This, the minister added, was being carried out in order to bring Pakistan’s airports up to international standards and implement and install all those facilities that were available at major airports in key countries around the world and that were a requirement for an airport to be considered as one in accordance with global levels. The Cabinet meeting was informed that some people have already shown interest in the matter.
“However, we are ‘separating’ it lawfully, wherein there’s the PCAA [Pakistan Civil Aviation Authority] that will act as a regulatory authority and a second body corporate. A date has been set for June 30 this year.
“The legal framework has to be clarified by then so that we can start tendering and we have some progress in that regard with international parties and steps are taken to outsource” the airports, Faraz added.
The committee includes Special Assistant to the Prime Minister on overseas Pakistanis Zulfiqar Bukhari, the chairperson of the Board Of Investment, and Babar Awan and Abdul Razzak Dawood, the advisers to PM on parliamentary affairs and commerce, industry, and investment, respectively.
“This committee will take the process forward,” the minister said.
Shibli said that instead of responding to the serious corruption allegations leveled against him, Shahbaz Sharif has demanded new elections. He said that Shahbaz Sharif wants to avoid accountability, however, this time he will not be allowed to flee.
In a briefing to the media after the federal cabinet meeting, he said that the sugar inquiry would soon be concluded and its report will be presented by next Tuesday. Answering a question, he said that there was no similarity between the sugar export and drug scandals and Shahbaz Sharif’s crimes.
He also said that a report on illegal recruitments made in the past was submitted during the cabinet meeting while the non-reporting ministries have been given a week’s tiem.Shibli Faraz said that the Prime Minister has directed to pay media dues before Eid-ul-Fitr .