- Says govt should give Rs300 bln, 9 months to PIA employees to fix the airline
- Says take Rs 200 bln from Metro train and give it to PIA
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) senior leader and Opposition Leader in the National Assembly (NA) Syed Khursheed Shah has suggested to give Rs 300 billion and nine months to employees of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) to resolve the financial crisis faced by the national flag carrier.
Shah said that Rs 200 billion of the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) project was being spent on Lahore Orange Train project.
Talking to media persons on Sunday, he said that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had no time to attend the National Assembly sessions.
Shah offered to play the role of mediator between government and the protesting PIA workers to end the strike and proposed to utilise the money set aside for Orange Line Train on PIA.
He lashed out at government representatives and challenged them to prove the allegations leveled against him.
The opposition leader also complained about the accusations against the PPP and said that the issue would be raised in the parliament.
He said that ordinance regarding the national flag carrier’s corporatisation had been passed in haste.
“The PIA is suffering billions of rupees in losses but it seems that the PML-N led government is indifferent to the situation,” he said.
He stressed the need for settling the issue through dialogue instead of use of force.
He said the employees were in a state of fear over the proposed privatisation of the national flag carrier and the government’s stance on it.
Shah said that he would be happy to see Sharif succeed but not at the cost of the poor.
“Provision of jobs is vital for progress and prosperity of the country,” he added.
Responding to a question, Khursheed said that the government was levying 64.5 per cent tax on the people which needed to be utilised for development, progress of the country and uplifting the living standards of the common man.