Expakistani President Relative Contractor of Gutted Nato Supplies

Javed Aziz Khan

 

PESHAWAR: The contractor of parking bays transshipping Nato logistics to Afghanistan, which were attacked for five times in eleven days, is nephew of a former president of Pakistan, said sources.

The contractor of majority of the parking lots located on both sides of the Ring Road, the source added, is settled in Karachi who got the contract when the country was being ruled by President Pervez Musharraf.

These parking bays transship Humvees, military trucks, containers of foods, ammunition, fuel and other stuff across the border to the US-led Nato forces. These goods arrive Karachi in containers from where it is transported in trailers and trucks to Afghanistan via Peshawar and Khyber Agency.

Despite getting huge amount for transportation of costly goods, no security arrangements have been made for any of the parking lot, normally called terminals. This was the reason that goods worth billions of rupees were gutted in four parking lots during less than two weeks.

Four container terminals on Ring Road---Port World Logistics, Alfaisal Container Terminal in Pishtakhara and Bilal Terminal and Farhad Terminals in Hazarkhwani --have been attacked with rockets, petrol bombs, hand grenades and other sophisticated weapons since December 1, killing two drivers and one watchman and gutting goods worth billions of rupees.

Around 15 containers and trucks were reduced to ashes in the first attack on Nato logistics on December 1 while 170 others were torched on December 7. Over sixty other military trucks were set on fire on December 8, two were damaged on December 11 and scores of other were destroyed on December 12.

At least 62 Humvees were set ablaze in the December 7 attack in Pishtakhara. “A Humvee values around 100,000 US dollars while some are even more expensive,” a senior security official told The News.

While coming from Grand Trunk Road up to Pishtakhara via Ring Road, one finds not a single trained security man to guard any of these parking lots. Containers, having expensive goods, can be seen placed on road sides without any boundary wall.

“Open spaces have been hired to place these containers and park trucks and Humvees. Neither there is any security arrangement nor there is any building that could ensure some protection to the expensive stuff being transported to the Nato forces, fighting against Taliban in Afghanistan.

“You know the police have a lot of challenges to meet these days. How can we leave other jobs and concentrate only on securing goods of a private company which is supposed to protect it with the help of their own security men,” a police official, requesting anonymity, told this scribe.

There were reports that 120 cops of the Peshawar Police have been deputed to guard these terminals after frequent attacks. The attacks, however, are still going on.

A police source disclosed that three different groups were involved in attacking container terminals one of which has been dismantled while the rest would be nabbed soon. The force had nabbed three alleged attackers while fleeing towards Khyber Agency after setting on fire trailers and containers in Port World Logistics.

There were some surprising episodes in attacks on Nato logistics that added to the confusion of the public. Many are surprised as to why police did not stop around 300 attackers who came on many occasions miles away from Khyber Agency.

People were also surprised when security guard of a terminal in Hazarkhwani said he had not seen a single attacker or rocket hitting containers inside the parking lot, where over 60 trailers and trucks were gutted.

On most of the occasions the fire fighters faced innumerable problems in extinguishing fire that erupted on containers having variety of chemicals. Fire fighters, according to some sources, were always found late coming to the spot for having no latest technology and machinery, even they were facing problems in getting water from the contractor concerned. 

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