Elite Force: Govt yet to approve vehicle-purchase request

Officials say force needs 100 vehicles urgently.

LAHORE: The government is yet to approve a summary regarding the purchase of 100 vehicles for the Mujahid Force, The Express Tribune has learnt.

City police had forwarded the summary to Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif for approval on Tuesday. A senior police official told The Express Tribune on the condition of anonymity that the Mujahid Force was currently equipped with 76 vehicles. He said 64 of these were being used to provide security to ministers, foreign delegations, bureaucrats and other dignitaries. The official said the remaining 12 vehicles were being used by the force to patrol the city.



He said even these were used for security purposes during emergencies.

The official said the force needed more vehicles immediately to effectively patrol the city in the wake of the Peshawar carnage and the lifting of a moratorium on executions. He said the force was particularly hard pressed as the Interior Ministry had warned law enforcement agencies that anti-state elements were likely to target civilians and attack prison facilities in the aftermath of the massacre. The official said the force needed the vehicles urgently to secure the city and conduct searches during the imposition of general hold-ups.

Another senior official told The Express Tribune that the Mujahid Force had been initially formed for patrolling purposes to curb crime. He said most of the force’s vehicles and personnel were being used to provide ministers, judges and foreigners among other dignitaries with security.

The official said the force would use the additional vehicles to effectively patrol the city after getting a green light from the government. He said the establishment of a dedicated force to provide important people with security was the only way to overcome the challenge. The official said this would also enable police to effectively discharge its primary responsibility of securing citizen’s lives and property.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 29^th, 2014.