Expressing grief over the lives lost in the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) crash on May 22, the Awami Workers Party’s (AWP) Karachi has demanded an impartial investigation of the tragedy. In a vigil held at Model Morh, near the site of the crash the other day, AWP representatives stated that initial reports suggested the crash occurred due to technical faults, adding that even the pilot’s final exchange with the Air Traffic Control tower indicated that he had failed to land the plane due to a technical issue. AWP Karachi President ShafiShaikh expressed reservations over the special investigation board that, according to him, comprised the same people who were responsible for this tragedy. “The ineptitude of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) is evident through the numbers. Pakistan’s rate of accidents in a million departures is 29.25, which is the highest in the world,” he stated, adding that though aviation in Pakistan had a spotty safety record with several incidents in the past decade, the investigation reports of these incidents were never made public. “Unfortunately, the blame is once again being pinned on engineering workers and the pilot, while the real culprits in the management and the ministry associated with the airline are not being questioned,” said AWP Karachi general secretary Khurram Ali, adding that these workers and low-ranking officers were simply scapegoats. He maintained that the ruling class had been trying to destroy the PIA through nepotistic appointments of inept officials, regardless of which section of the ruling class was in power.
