- Says culture of strikes and threats will not be tolerated in the country
SAHIWAL, February 2: Prime Minister Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said protesting employees of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) will be fired from service and can be sent to jail for a year. He said the culture of strikes and threats will not be tolerated in country. He said the situation of PIA is unacceptable. He said politics is being done regarding the matter of PIA, adding that some political parities’ are backing PIA employees. He said PIA is facing 100 million rupees loss daily. He said strike in PIA is injustice with Pakistan, adding that the protesting employees will have to face the music. Nawaz Sharif said that Khurshid Shah is respectable for him, adding that former prime minister Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had also enforced Essential Services (Maintenance) Act 1952 in 1976.
Talking to reporters during his visit to a coal power plant in Sahiwal, the premier went on to say that airline employees working during the strike will be given special rewards for their service.
Nawaz accused PIA workers of politicising the privatisation issue by resorting to strikes, adding that such acts were costing PIA Rs100 million per day. “Politics is going on in PIA. And it is going on with the backing of some political parties. Should we not check it and improve the situation?,” he remarked. The prime minister said the passengers face hardships due to poor service of PIA and the poor condition of its fleet. “Should we ignore it,” he questioned. “It will not happen at all,” Nawaz Sharif remarked. He further said that the protesting employees will face action, to be terminated from service and even will be facing one year imprisonment under the Essential Services Act. The prime minister said any concession for such elements in his view would be unfair for the country. He, however, maintained that those employees, who were doing good job in PIA, and were not paying heed to the striking elements, would be rewarded. Referring to the statement of Opposition Leader Khursheed Ahmad Shah, who described the government’s decision to extend Essential Services Act to PIA as a dictatorial decision, the prime minister said Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto had also extended this act to PIA in 1976.-Sabah
