Punjab to purchase three vehicles worth Rs200m

Vehicles will be purchased for security of VVIPs from a single source without opening a tender.

LAHORE:

The Punjab government plans purchasing three vehicles for Rs200million for the security of VVIPs, contrary to its claim of saving public funds through an austerity drive.

The vehicles would be purchased from a single source and without opening a tender as desired by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, an official told The Express Tribune on condition of anonymity.

The finance department has placed the money at the disposal of the provincial police chief for executing the task on priority.

The Punjab police already has six vehicles which were purchased between 2005 and 2008 for the security of VVIPs. “But these old vehicles are not equipped with gadgets which can jam cellular and satellite services,” the official said.

The new vehicles would have sophisticated systems capable of blocking most cellular, satellite, VHF/UHF and Wi-Fi frequencies. A foreign firm has been asked to make presentations on the technical specifications of the required vehicles to a committee headed by additional inspector-general of police.

The finance department, in this summary, recommended the requisite process of open tendering to invite bids. The police department then advertised as a result of which five companies submitted their bids and were shortlisted in the process.

The police department also received a directive from the chief minister that the vehicles would be purchased through Pakistan Air Force (PAF) as a single source supplier. The finance department then placed Rs198 million at the disposal of IGP who will transfer the amount to PAF.

Of the three vehicles, one would be assigned to the president/prime minister, the second to the chief justice of Pakistan and the third to the chief minister, though the chief minister is not a VVIP according to the blue book of protocol.

“Although two vehicles will be reserved for the president/prime minister and the chief justice, one will be deployed with Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif for their routine travel in the province,” the official said.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 15th, 2011.