Developments: Centre wants details of CAA officers’ mess, recruitment

NAB, K-P seeks contract details of airport expansion project

PESHAWAR: The federal government plans to adopt measures to reduce public expenditures, its focus being on different government owned properties to generate income, the government has sought details of the mess being run by the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA).

Officials privy to the development stated that the federal government has asked CAA officials to provide details of the properties owned by CAA besides those being used by CAA on rent.

“Yes, there are reports that the government wants these details,” a senior official from the Aviation division confirmed however requested anonymity since he was not entitled to speak to media.

On the other hand, National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) chapter has sought all records of recruitment at Bacha Khan International Airport (BKIA) during the last 10 years.

The authority has also sought details of all the PC-1s for the construction contracts and expansion of the facility during the last 10 years. The record, according to senior CAA officials also includes recruitment by the CAA at the facility.

CAA officials elaborated that NAB conveyed that everything should be provided to the NAB K-P chapter by August 28. However, the record was yet to be submitted.

“Yes, this is confirmed as we have been told to provide NAB the record of recruitment and PC-1s since 2008,” a CAA official stated.

He also informed that all the records for construction including the expansion work has been demanded adding that a list of all those recruited was one of the demands.

“We had sought details but I do not remember if the details were provided,” a senior NAB official told The Express Tribune.

Rs3 billion have been spent upon renovations and expansion of the facility which began in 2016. The expansion includes enhanced car parking besides upgrading of the facility. A soft inauguration of the upgraded facility was held in Ramazan where the former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi inaugurated the facility’s upgraded version. The expansion work is still underway.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 2^nd, 2018.