Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s (KP) Governor, Ghulam Ali, has promulgated the KP Ministers (Salaries, Allowance, and Privileges) (Second Amendment) Bill, 2022, despite expressing serious reservations.
What’s interesting to note here is that the bill regarding the perks of legislators includes a special clause regarding the helicopter owned by the provincial government.
According to media reports, the official KP government helicopter is now available for private booking on rent. Moreover, ministers, special assistants, and senior officials can also use the helicopter without any restriction.
Besides, the bill has granted legal cover to all flights of the official helicopter since November 2008, putting the debate surrounding the use of the helicopter to rest.
The controversial bill was passed earlier this month despite strong resistance from the opposition. The Governor had also initially sent the bill back to the assembly for reevaluation.
He expressed serious concerns over the helicopter part of the bill and recommended the legislators to review the bill. However, the Governor has now signed the bill into law.