Change of airport lounge saves President from stale juice

E-Paper | July 14, 2026

RAWALPINDI: It was revealed on Saturday that expired fruit juices were being served to guests at the State Lounge in Benazir Bhutto International Airport.

President Mamnoon Hussain’s personal physician noticed the expiry date on the juice boxes which were to be served to the president on his arrival in Islamabad.

The president was expected to arrive at the State Lounge upon his return from Karachi on a PIA flight.

However, he preferred to use Nur Khan Airbase Lounge rather than the State Lounge.

Sources said the president’s physician found six more expired juice boxes in the lounge. Member of National Assembly Ijazul Haq and Pakistan People’s Party Workers (PPP-W) leader Dr Safdar Abbasi along with his wife Naheed Khan also used the State Lounge on Saturday but did not drink the juices.

Airport Manager Ayaz Jadoon said the food and drinks counter in the State Lounge comes under the purview of Special Branch and Foreign Office protocol and they manage it.

“Yes, the issue has come to my knowledge and we are looking into it,” Mr Jadoon said.

Published in Dawn, January 6th, 2015

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Rabia

Jan 06, 2015 09:21am

Who's Mamnoon Hussain?

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mohammed

Jan 06, 2015 09:27am

SO what half of the Pakistan is drinking dirty water if Mr.President drinks expired juice he would not die nor sun will rise from the North.

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Bachabassi

Jan 06, 2015 09:30am

Really, you need a Doctor to check for expiry dates on juice cartons??

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Zaheer Khurshid

Jan 06, 2015 09:35am

It is really very shocking to know that such substandard food items are served to VIPs, then what about we public, I think we are being served with more infected items. Brave we have been resisting all these.

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Garib manus

Jan 06, 2015 10:09am

What about the food and drinks served to the ordinary citizen flyers by various airlines?

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Ahmad

Jan 06, 2015 10:22am

Mr Jadoon's reply is the typical of a bureaucrat. They can never deliver and are always ready to put responsibility on others

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khanm

Jan 06, 2015 10:34am

Politics in Pakistan is like stale bread. It's so yada yada that the best among us can hardly stand it....so what it was merely a stale juice...

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susheel

Jan 06, 2015 11:19am

It is amazing that the news report raises questions about chances that stale juice could have been offered to ur president while as the fundamental issue should be why such juice is available at the air ports for common passengers.

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True Fact

Jan 06, 2015 11:28am

Mamnoon who? :s

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TWA

Jan 06, 2015 11:33am

@Rabia really who is he?

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Javid

Jan 06, 2015 11:51am

Mamnoon is president of Pakistam from Karachi , Rabia you like it or not.

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Oridinary citizen

Jan 06, 2015 12:08pm

This flight on Saturday PK 370 was scheduled to depart at 7:00pm but it was delayed till 9:15pm and last passenger to get on board was Mamnoon Hussain who arrived in a 20 vehicle convoy on the runway.

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L.Ahmad

Jan 06, 2015 12:45pm

A country where majority of people struggle to get clean drinking water, our VIPs cannot whinge over stale fruit juice.

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Bozo

Jan 06, 2015 12:54pm

hypocrisy: vip/non-vip the service standards should be the same. It is ordered to be same for all in Islam, and is implemented as same service standards for all in the west (first world countries).

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citizen

Jan 06, 2015 01:00pm

Democracy is great..Each citizen of the country ( even if he is president) is treated equally !

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Merchant

Jan 06, 2015 01:10pm

Lounges are normally used before flight departure! What was the reason to use the lounge on returning? Just another example of "muft ka Kahaana"

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azhar

Jan 06, 2015 01:41pm

@Bachabassi, in a country where no one knows who (officials) is responsible for what, may be doctor was assigned this important task...:)

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An old guy

Jan 06, 2015 01:42pm

@Rabia He is the guy who used to bring nehari/pai to nawaz sharif when he used to visit Karachi. Last I heard, he moved to the presidency last year so he may get the nehari delivered to the prime minister house within 30 minutes of order. Current whereabouts unknown!

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Gaurav Arya

Jan 06, 2015 01:59pm

@Javid - Mamnoon is from Agra.

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Jan 06, 2015 02:04pm

Thank God otherwise we would have to pay from tax money for him to have his stomach checked from London.

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Akram

Jan 06, 2015 02:06pm

why do these VIP's need special lounges? why can't they sit with ordinary people?

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Muhammad Faizan Khan

Jan 06, 2015 02:13pm

@Rabia Excellent Question ;-). Definition: "An old inoperative rusty machine tied with the the seat of President of Pakistan that functions according to the directions/orders received through multiple receptors from many other US run Robots (from in & out of Pakistan), is known as Mamnoon Hussain

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Adnan Khan

Jan 06, 2015 02:14pm

Report proves a point that our President is not imprisoned and is allowed to leave the President House.

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barmanoo

Jan 06, 2015 02:22pm

This is a common occurance at this airport. I personally have been served expired drinks many times and returned it to them without them even blinking an eye. Its a common thing so no need to investigate and get on with rectifying it Mr jadoon.

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Guest65

Jan 06, 2015 02:31pm

Whats Strange and outragious about it sir , Every day in every city and town , ordinary citizens consume not only expired juices (f they can afford one ! ) but happily eat rotten food to barely survive , its a business as usual in the Islamic republic of Pakistan , a neculaer power where the basic human daily use necessities are either not available but if available , they are either Expired or have no manufacturing or Expiry dates . i once purchaed a massage oil from a dealer in famous karachi street ( ziabun nissa ) which had these basic important informations missing from the packet as well as from the oil bottle itself . I asked the sale person and he rudely told me , this is a Life Long product of utility , if you care about these dates then Do not buy ( adding that we are the sole manufacturer of this product and no one else has it !!! ) , So What if an expired fruit juice was being served in a VVIP longue at a National airport , the rulers must once in awhile taste what the orinary folks do every day ...

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Naeem Syed

Jan 06, 2015 02:33pm

Nothing unusual everything in the Country is substandard and or expired.

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Bilal

Jan 06, 2015 02:33pm

President sab, many people in this country do not have clean drinking water. Hundreds of people, including children, died in Thar because they had no water at all. And you are talking about stale juice, sir? Does anyone remember Omar Bin Khatab (RA)? Remember what he said "If a dog dies due to thirst on the banks of Euphrates, Omar himself will be held responsible for it". Sir, CHILDREN died and you are worried about your protocol. Have some conscience please. God, or whatever you believe in, will ask you about it.

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ashok kumar lal

Jan 06, 2015 03:21pm

Ah. So much like my country.

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sajn

Jan 06, 2015 03:28pm

@Akram because ordinary people are unhygenic of course. But seriously, the date on these cartons is usually just a "Best before" date, does not mean that the contents have expired or are no longer fit for consumption. What should be of more concern to both the media and the public is why he was accompanied by a twenty car convoy, who pays for this convoy and why the plane was delayed for more than two hours.

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Zahid

Jan 06, 2015 03:29pm

Why can't these people use normal arrival and departure lounges? Why promote VIP culture? Recently I saw a picture of Shahbaz Sharif, Isha Dar etc standing on the footpath outside 10 Downing Street London waiting for the British Prime Minister. If they can do it there, what happens to them when they return?

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M A U

Jan 06, 2015 03:55pm

Substandard item served to substandard govt offical by substandart b-cracy

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Syed Husain

Jan 06, 2015 04:03pm

Am I surprised to read this? Absolutely not. So what is new?

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Bilal Ahmed

Jan 06, 2015 04:15pm

@ Rabia ! Don't you know him ? He is a very famous personality of Pakistan - He is the PRESIDENT OF PAKISTAN. He is the same person because of whom, a lot of IBA graduates could not attend their Graduation Ceremony, a lot of parents could not see their children receiving Degrees. He is the same person who destroyed the precious moments of those Students & Parents. He is a VVIP, he is Mamnoon Hussain.

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M.M.Sherazi

Jan 06, 2015 04:21pm

A stellar example of Pakistan’s poor surveillance and inspection system, it is so common due to favourtism and nepotism that every field of Pakistan has been corrupted with the appointment of ineligible senior positions, the true benefits of bureaucracy harnessed democracy!!!

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Haroon

Jan 06, 2015 05:01pm

@Oridinary citizen I bet he travelled First Class. Are we ever going to get rid of VIP culture?

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Ikram

Jan 06, 2015 05:35pm

Between the useless post of a president and his staff, a poor nation is wasting millions of Rupees on salaries, housing etc. Change the constitution and eliminate the President and his staff.

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Kamran Saleem Khan

Jan 06, 2015 06:09pm

@Rabia brother on manmohan

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Sher Shah

Jan 06, 2015 06:11pm

@Javid I like him he is from Peshawar.

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Ajamal

Jan 06, 2015 06:18pm

What right do Dr Safdar Abbasi and his wife Naheed Khan have to use the State Lounge?

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Aziz

Jan 06, 2015 06:26pm

I am really touched and my heart bleeds for our esteemed President. An out of date juice for him while the rest of the nation drinks clean and healthy water??? Shame on you the State Lounge administration. Bur, Mr President; please do not worry, Sir. You will survive this juice as the minions have barely survived on the kind of water that your government provides and the previous governments have provided them.

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Abdullah

Jan 06, 2015 06:30pm

..military courts... for all the accused & definitely the accuser + his personal physician (PP) - this is a new one where an official travels with his PP - who is paying for him?

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Rabia

Jan 06, 2015 06:44pm

@Javid Really. Well, NOT

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adnan

Jan 07, 2015 06:06am

HE IS nice person batter then zardari

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