Cabinet okays PIA sale amid skyrocketing losses
The federal cabinet on Wednesday gave the go-ahead for privatising Pakistan International Airlines (PIA), whose total losses have increased to Rs750 billion. It also strongly condemned Israel’s aggression on Palestinians, calling it a blatant violation of UN resolutions and demanding an immediate halt to the indiscriminate bombing of Gaza. The cabinet also approved the appointments of former Lahore High Court judge Sohail Nasir as deputy chairman of the National Accountability Bureau and Syed Ehtesham Qadir Shah as its prosecutor general for accountability. Both positions fell vacant last month. The appointments were later notified. The cabinet meeting, presided over by caretaker Prime Minister Anwaarul Haq Kakar, also decided that no genuine and registered Afghan refugee would be repatriated, and the ongoing crackdown would only target those staying illegally in Pakistan. Speaking to reporters after the cabinet meeting, caretaker Information Minister Murtaza Solangi said the cabinet ratified the decisions taken in the meetings held on Jan 21 and 28 regarding the state-owned enterprises, including PIA’s privatisation. Flanked by caretaker Privatisation Minister Fawad Hassan Fawad, Mr Solangi said the cabinet also approved a proposal to hire the services of a consortium for financial advisory to sell off PIA.