Ombudsman orders probe into alleged mismanagement at IIA

ISLAMABAD:

Federal Ombudsman Ejaz Ahmad Qureshi while taking cognizance of complaints against management at the Islamabad International Airport regarding the late release and mishandling of baggage of overseas passengers, constituted a team of senior officers comprising Dr Inamul Haq Javed, Pervez Haleem Rajput and M Javed Chaudhary to investigate the issue.

The committee has submitted its preliminary report after listening to the complaints of the public, involving the entire process of baggage handling of overseas passengers and holding meetings with the management of the airport.

The team noted that a number of complaints of overseas passengers of five international flights coming from Saudi Arabia, Qatar, UAE and other countries were forced to wait for hours in getting their luggage due to the mismanagement of luggage handling staff of different companies.

The team also noted the difficulties of overseas passengers who had to wait for hours in the long queue along with their children at immigration counters. It was informed that although there were 40 counters, only 11 were operational due to a shortage of staff.

Published in The Express Tribune, April 28^th, 2022.