Sitting ducks: Elite personnel don’t use basic tools

VIPs’ guards often serve without bulletproof jackets.

LAHORE: Elite Force personnel on security duty are often without bulletproof jackets, though wearing them is mandatory and an essential tool for doing their jobs. Officials say there is a shortage of jackets, while personnel say the jackets are uncomfortable to wear, particularly in the heat.

An Elite Force soldier’s standard gear includes a pistol with 15 bullets, an SMG rifle with two magazines of 30 bullets each, a helmet and a bulletproof jacket. Sources in the force said that there was no shortage of guns, but there was a lack of bullets and jackets. Many personnel haven’t been issued jackets, and those that have often don’t wear them, they said.

This correspondent approached an Elite Force soldier on escort duty why he was not wearing his bulletproof jacked. “We are short of jackets,” he said. “The jackets that we have are in bad shape; many are missing the breast plate.” Each jacket includes a heavy metal plate that actually stops the bullet. “The plate is quite heavy, about five to seven kilos. Many personnel on security duty will remove the plate and just wear the empty jacket,” he said. “I’ve even known men on security with VVIPs, like the prime minister, to do this.”

An officer said that Elite Force personnel guarding VIPs were often on ‘static duty’, meaning standing stationary at one place, which was a tough task when wearing full gear and in the heat. He pointed out that Elite Force personnel were only supposed to serve on static duty for a very brief period, but this was not the case in practice, with guards often standing stationary at one place for several hours.

An ammunitions expert and a senior police officer told The Express Tribune that lighter bulletproof jackets were available, but they did not provide enough protection against the sort of weapons that Pakistani security personnel come up against. “The lightweight jackets they use in developed countries can only stop small arms fire. Here most terrorists use Kalashnikovs; you can’t stop that with a lightweight jacket. To stop rifle bullets you need a heavy plate,” he said.

Superintendent of Police (Mobiles) Romail Akram said it was mandatory for Elite Force personnel to wear bulletproof jackets. He admitted that they had a limited supply of jackets. “We will try to buy new jackets to overcome the shortage,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 26^th,  2011.