Jinnah International Airport Karachi will become third airfield of the country to have on spot mechanism to tackle grievances of landing in and flying out overseas Pakistanis - indicating the resolve of the Federal Ombudsman to address their complaints and consider plausible suggestions to facilitate them.
When the Ombudsman took up the challenge to set up facilitation desks at major airports, doubts were cast on its practicality but with his guidance, backed by determined efforts of the Grievance Commissioner Hafiz Ahsan Ahmad Khokar, this has been transformed into a reality.
Now Islamabad and Lahore airports have Facilitation Desk for Overseas Pakistanis and Karachi will have it by first week of August as preparations are afoot to establish it.
Khokar held his fist meeting with the concerned agencies on last Friday at the Jinnah International Airport to have discussion on all aspect of the One Window Facilitation Desk in line with decision of the Ombudsman Salman Farooqi to provide such a facility at all major airports of the country. The facility will be formally inaugurated at Jinnah International Airport, Karachi on August 5 which will be third of its type in the country following one each already established at Benazir Bhutto Shaheed International Airport, Islamabad and Allama Iqbal International Airport Lahore.
"This Facilitation Desk is not for mere registration of complaints but to provide instant relief and institutionalise culture of prompt and quality service delivery," Hafiz Khokar told the meeting.
"Peshawar International Airport will also have it in August and we plan to have the same at all our 9 airports by early September," he said in reply to a question. "We have to raise public confidence," he reiterated referring to problems faced by passengers due to lack of co-ordination among agencies and also inadequate awareness on part of many of the travellers themselves.
With specific reference to overseas Pakistanis, he said 7.5 million Pakistanis are living in 124 countries of the world, with sizable number of them in the Middle East, their home remittances growing at the rate of 15.5% and significantly contributing to national exchequer.
As for passenger load and traffic handled at airports in the country, he said as compared to 9,365,074 handled in 2010, 9,715,575 in 2011, 10,295,799 in 2012, 10,809,051 in 2013 and 12,337,225 in 2014, no less than 6,457,243 were attended till June 15 of the current year.
In a nutshell number of passengers is increasing and this needed to be complimented with improvement in quality of service, good administration with equal attention towards accountability.
The Facilitation Desk, he said was also part of an exercise to address systemic issues related to overseas Pakistanis. An independent website for target population has been initiated besides appointment of focal persons in Pakistan and all at its foreign missions.