PM clears plan to hire 2,000 men for anti-terror unit. PHOTO: FILE
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has approved a plan by the Punjab government to recruit around 2,000 personnel as part of the new Counter-Terrorism Force (CTF) in the province, The Express Tribune has learnt.
The premier reviewed the follow-up reports on the CTF proposal while presiding over a high-level meeting at Jati Umra, Raiwind on Saturday. He was briefed on progress over the plan by Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, Inspector General (IG) Khan Baig, the home secretary and other senior provincial government officials.
According to sources privy to the meeting, while Prime Minister Nawaz gave his go-ahead for the recruitment of 2,000 personnel for the CTF after being briefed on the matter.
They added the structure and mechanism of the CTF, as well as its status as an independent body or a police wing will be finalised by the home secretary before the next meeting.
According to the sources, most of the participants at the meeting wish to see the CTF as an independent body. But senior police officials including the IG want the new force to function as a wing of the police department.
Turkish trainers and SSG instructors
Punjab Assembly member and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader Shuja Khanzada – who looks after the home department and has been assigned to replicate the Turkish police model in Punjab – shared details regarding the CTF. According to him, the CTF will be a special force tasked with conducting timely action against militants and terrorists. He said the force would be patterned along the lines of similar units in Europe and the US, and will have its own helicopter wing.
Khanzada said the government will hire around 400 instructors, mostly from Turkey and the rest from Pakistan Army and its Special Services Group, to train CTF personnel. He added the training imparted from the Turkish trainers would be significant as the latter have experience fighting the 40-year-old Kurdish insurgency inside their country. In addition to that, CTF personnel will receive a year’s training from the Punjab Elite School, he said.
The MPA said he would be part of the prime minister’s delegation during the latter’s visit to Turkey. He said he would seek the services of Turkish trainers, both for the CTF and to revamp the Punjab police department along Turkish lines, during this trip.
Additional IG Sarmad Saeed Khan provided further details regarding the proposed CTF. He said the government eventually plans to recruit around 5,000 personnel this year for the force.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 15th, 2013.
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only one thing u do which u do not like that change your police with army induct all army in police and rise the recuretment in army you are wasting the money of your nation i know u wont do itt because u are not loyal to pakistan
@Facts: yes, dear you said perfectly everything if it will practically implemented then only we can b called ourselves honest otherwise dishonesty will ruin everything as its going on and everyone is watching and silent.
Punjab Government and Prime Minister take this Step is very good for pakistan i appriciate Nawaz Government this time pakistani nation have a need for security all over the department but (Terrorist ) is first. if this force succeded i think this achivement is a bigest achivement of this government. I
Pakistan Army has known the terrorist group from its birth, took them head-on in Swat and South Waziristan. Yet the PM and CM Punjab Shabhaz thinks that Pakistan Army can't do the job and is inadequate? Why not bring the Sri-Lanka Special forces who fought considerably violent and longer war and unlike Turkish won the insurgency. Turkey is part of NATO so the training that they provide will be studied by our enemies who will exploit the weaknesses and we will be fighting prolonged war.
The raising of CTF would be of great relief to the military who can now continue their commercial activities without any hinderance of carrying out operations against the militants. They can spread their activities to the neighbouring countries including India who wants peace with Pakistan and increase the bilateral trade between the two countries.
The main problem of Pakistan is that it can’t diagnose and treat the root cause of the problems. While rather wasting time on the treatments of problem is useless. First terrorism doesn't exist. It’s the fake propaganda word introduce by the capitalist and occupier to suppress the voice for justice and freedom. While this is the crime that exists and the criminals use the word terrorism as tool against the weaker. The basic problems of Pakistan is the 65 years system of injustice, corruption, dishonesty, power in few hands, competition for power, money and fame, exploitation of other rights, suppression of weaker, violation of faith and belief and crime against humanity. Until and unless if there is no justice their must not be peace and stability. The Government if really sincere in their efforts then it must focus on building Nation and prove his honesty rather suppressing the voice of the nation through force and exploitation. There is great need of monitoring and accountability of bureaucracy, law enforcement agencies, Politicians, equal distribution of resource and power based on rights and competency, establishment of true system of justice without any involvement, even accountability of army and security establishment, formation of new provinces based on good governance, administration and public services, anti-corruption force against all governing bodies, police, security and law enforcement institutes and politicians. While spending billions on suppressing own people and nation through introducing such forces and violating their rights and freedom is useless and will increase instability and insecurity.
Police officials want CTF to work under police department so that they can have the privilege to assign CTF squads as their personnel bodyguards. Same happened with Elite Force.