SAAB planes becoming bone of contention
From Our Defence Correspondenct

ISLAMABAD—Terming the decision of government to buy two Saab planes from Sweden for VVIP travel with the tune of US$ 1 billion particularly in the backdrop of October 8 calamity absolutely strange, the opposition strongly protested over the matter in the meeting of Senate Standing Committee on Defence and Defence Productions on Friday.
The Standing Committee meeting chaired by Senator Nisar Memon suspended the routine agenda and started a debate over the purchase of two Saab planes for VVIPs. The Senate body was told the planes for travel of VVIPs including President and Prime Minister will have all latest security features. The opposition senators Farhatulah Babar, Rukhsana Zubairi, Sardar Mahtab Ahmed Khan expressed their resentment over the deal and said when Pakistan was in dire need to save each and every penny for the rehabilitation and reconstruction of quake affected areas of Azad Jammu and Kashmir and NWFP, there was no sense why government was spending
Rift cropped up between the government and opposition members during the Senate Standing Committee meeting on the issue of procuring planes for the VVIP. Opposition expressed its reservation for procuring multi-million dollars aircrafts for the VVIP and asked the chair to allow the press to attend the committee meeting. The also staged a walkout of the meeting to mark the protest and later returned with a mutual understanding not to raise the issue before the press till the matter is resolved.
But in defiance of the understanding reached between government and opposition both parties came up to the press with totally divergent views. Statement issued by the government after the meeting, said the apprehensions of opposition regarding purchasing of the VVIP plane were removed during the meeting chaired by Senator Nisar Memon.
While the opposition’s Senators of the Standing Committee included, Rukhsana Zuberi, Sardar Mehtab Khan, and Farhatullah Khan Babar dubbed the press statement issued by the government as flagrant violation of the understanding reached between them. They lashed out that the government had not come up with the reply to the satisfaction of the opposition regarding the issue but the press release spoke of entirely version. The press statement further said that procuring of VVIP plane was on top of the agenda and as the issue which was on top of the agenda was not disposed off owing to the reservations of opposition, therefore it was mutually agreed upon to adjourned the meeting to give time to the government’s team to seek answers to the queries raised by the opposition. “Claim of the Senate Secretariat that satisfactorily replies were given to the queries of the opposition was not only wrong but in contrary to the understanding reached among the committee members”. The statement added. The opposition raised objection for spending multi-million dollars on procurement of the plane when the appeals were being made at home and internationally of donations for relief the quake affectees.
The opposition inquired, “Why the Boeing plane 737 was grounded, which was in use of the then Prime Minister”. The opposition also inquired about as if there was any section in the agreement which facilitates cancellation of the order and utilization of the money for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the quake affectees.