The Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) received relief from itsfinancial troubles as the Federal Board of Revenue (FBR) restored all 26 ofthe airline’s bank accounts on Wednesday.
This action followed a written assurance from the national flag carrierthat it would make all payments this month.
According to the FBR, out of the total Rs8 billion owed by PIA, it will payRs2.5 billion this month. The freezing of accounts had previously led tofinancial difficulties for PIA, including delays in salary payments to itsstaff for August.
The national flag carrier’s spokesman also confirmed the restoration of theaccounts. Two weeks ago, on August 31, the FBR froze PIA’s 26 bank accountsdue to non-payment of federal excise duty amounting to Rs8.84 billion. PIAhad pledged to pay Rs2 billion this month, but this commitment had not beenfulfilled.
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The FBR attributed the issue to PIA’s senior management, accusing them ofusing separate accounts and failing to deposit the federal excise dutycollected from passengers into the national treasury. The FBR had alsolodged a complaint with the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) under theanti-money laundering act against PIA management for the use of FED funds.
It’s important to note that the freezing of bank accounts did not impactPIA’s flight operations, as clarified by a PIA spokesman.
