PIA took action against 2 employees for involvement in money laundering, Senate committee told

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PIA took action against 2 employees for involvement in money laundering, Senate committee told

Nadir Guramani Published November 22, 2018

The Pakistan International Airlines has taken action against two of its employees who were found involved in money laundering, the airline's Chief Executive Officer Arshad Malik told a Senate committee on Thursday.

Malik was briefing the Senate Committee on Aviation about the measures that had been taken to put an end to smuggling and money laundering. He said the airline had taken action against two of its employees after they were identified for being allegedly involved in money laundering.

The committee's chairman, Senator Mushahidullah Khan, directed Malik to submit a report on the action taken against those who were found involved in smuggling and/or money laundering.

The PIA CEO said the names of employees who were suspected of being involved in the crime had been provided to security agencies and that they were being watched.

A secretary of the Civil Aviation Authority (CAA), who had appeared before the committee as well, told the lawmakers that as per the directions of the prime minister, the authority had set up offices for security agencies at each airport. The agencies will monitor movements on airports through CCTV cameras, the official revealed.

He also said a joint control room had been set up to prevent smuggling and money laundering.

Pakistan

Nadir Guramani is a journalist and anchorperson for Dawn News (TV) with 17 years of experience. His reporting covers parliamentary affairs, foreign policy, politics, climate change, and human rights. He can be found on X at @nguramani.

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Saad

Nov 22, 2018 07:34pm

SO PIA is better administrator than the Government?

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Masood (TX).

Nov 22, 2018 08:15pm

You just found out about this ? This has been going around since 1990s. Ex-PIA employees in my city are one of the most well off people. Some PIA employees and their family members own a chain of grocery stores and gas stations. At one time they had a flat rate of 20% for transferring huge amounts.

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Abbasshah

Nov 22, 2018 08:22pm

What about missing travelers baggage’s wth expensive items ???Quick to advise to file claims to be paid little amount then the actual cost of lost baggage a person has to be agreed upon?(something better then nothing).

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gauhar mir

Nov 22, 2018 08:36pm

Good, Pakistan is changing towards progress and success

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Nov 22, 2018 08:40pm

Some guys are lucky who have all their life made a mess in an organization and now are enquiring about it.

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M.Saeed

Nov 22, 2018 08:41pm

US dollars are printed using special ink that can be detected in screening machines. Even the exact value of currency notes hidden can be detected. Therefore, we must have that provision introduced in the baggage and body scanning machines at airports and unaccompanied luggage security checking points.

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Shib

Nov 22, 2018 09:14pm

Only 2 employees...

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Riaz

Nov 22, 2018 09:22pm

Another positive step against corruption. Keep it up.

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Wazir

Nov 22, 2018 09:54pm

Mushahidullah is asking them whose brothers are in PIA and he himself was loader/lifter in PIA.How can he ask without his conflict of interest?shame on PML N for having such people

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Sameer

Nov 22, 2018 10:37pm

@Saad, because PIA made answerable by the gov.

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Tanvir Afgan

Nov 23, 2018 03:43am

The head honcho of the PPP used these people to send out money.

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Leoman

Nov 23, 2018 07:53am

And who is the chairman of the committee ? And who are the employees? And see, what is being done to them? And that was the report.

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Ali

Nov 23, 2018 06:57pm

PIA employees caught in money laundering? PIA employees earlier were caught smuggling? PIA employees were also caught shop lifting in Paris and New York? These employees are criminals who were given jobs during PPP and PML governments. All these political "jiyalas" given jobs illegally should be sacked forthwith. Two PIA union are politically affiliated. "Air Alliance" with PML and "People's Unity" with PPP, they must be banned. These militant unions have caused PIA's bad image and unsustainable losses. Airlines should have professional unions, not political unions. Once political meddling in PIA ends, it can again become "Great People To Fly With".

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naim

Nov 23, 2018 07:18pm

The exact modus operandi of PIA staff involved in money laundering has not been disclosed in the above report, but it appears that PIA employees have been pulling off dollar exodus from Pakistan in huge amounts daily. There have been reports in the press to this effect from time to time for the last many years.. The tragedy is that it is the dollars that have been sent abroad by this means and not rupees. Unfortunately, the American money is generously welcomed into any foreign country and therefeore we should not expect cooperation from any foreign country in ths regard. We have got to guard against this evil right in our own country and save ourserves from constant bleeding of foreign exchange. Such money is usually earned by powers earning huge amounts through bribery that involves power-invested bureaucracy, smugglers, traesury thieves, and the list is endless.

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