KARACHI: Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry has asserted that those who banned the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) were now seeking its assistance for evacuation of their people from Afghanistan.
The minister expressed his views in reference to the ban imposed by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency on the PIA over safety deficiencies.
Addressing a press conference in Karachi on Saturday, Fawad Chaudhry highlighted the international recognition for Pakistan on evacuation efforts in Afghanistan, saying that Pakistan had so far evacuated more than 4,400 people from neighbouring country, and of them, “PIA alone brought over 2,000 people to the country”.
“Apart from that, as many as 27,000 people arrived into Pakistan from the Chaman border and some from the Torkham border,” he said. Referring to the ban on national carrier, he said the international powers must take decisions with rationale and not by force.
He further said Afghan nationals possessing valid documents could come into Pakistan. “We will give our complete support to Afghanistan and it can only become stable if their institutions are intact,” he added.
The minister remarked that the situation in Afghanistan could change if Pakistan’s advice was implemented and considered by the world. “We hold credit for prudent analysis on the Afghan situation and what was earlier said by our prime minister is now a reality,” he added.
He insisted that the world must not wait for Afghanistan to collapse. “We need to engage with authorities in Afghanistan and the world has the responsibility to help Afghans in governance along with maintaining stability in the country,” he added.
Meanwhile, Chaudhry also criticised the Sindh government, saying that the federal government transferred Rs1.9 trillion to the province in the last three years and asked the media to question the provincial administration about its spending.
He said Sindh was the only province where the administration was indifferent to the basic health needs of its citizens. “Sindh is even not willing to give health cards to its people,” he pointed out.
“If we ask the Sindh government about proper spending of money, they blame us for interfering in provincial affairs,” he said, adding that every department in Karachi sought bribes from people to serve them.
