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KARACHI— A special court recently convicted four former Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) workers of using fraudulent degrees to get employment and promotions. This finding has sparked further worry about the structural difficulties harming Pakistan’s national airline.
A Decade of Deception
The scam, which was first discovered during an audit by the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) in 2022, revealed that 457 PIA employees had earned their posts using forged university degrees. Among these were those in essential jobs like pilots and cabin crew, where passenger safety and operational integrity are extremely important.
After years of legal proceedings, the four convicted employees—two pilots, a stewardess, and a data entry operator—admitted to their fraudulent actions. Their admissions exposed not just personal dishonesty, but also systemic failures to verify credentials during the hiring process.
Profiles of Fraud
Nazia Naheed: A stewardess who joined PIA in 2001, Naheed utilized a falsified Bachelor of Arts degree to get a promotion. Her fraud remained unreported for more than a decade, until her credentials were checked in 2014, resulting in her firing.
Mohsin Ali: Hired as a co-pilot in 2006, Ali acknowledged to presenting a forged BA degree. Despite the fact that the job only required an intermediate certification, his lie lost him his job when it was found in 2014.
Arif Tarar: Starting his career as a peon, Tarar climbed the ranks to a data entry operator by presenting a fraudulent FA degree. Though he retired in 2018 after 39 years of service, the audit exposed his forgery, tarnishing his long career.
Kashan Aijaz Dodhy: Perhaps the most shocking case, Dodhy used a counterfeit Bachelor of Science degree to qualify as a cadet pilot in 1995. His deceit went undetected for nearly two decades, leading to his dismissal in 2019.
Implications and Reforms
The FIA’s findings have had far-reaching implications for PIA and Pakistan’s aviation sector at large. In 2020, the global aviation community was already alarmed by reports that over 30% of civilian pilots in Pakistan held fake licenses. These revelations resulted in a temporary ban on PIA flights to Europe by the European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA). While the ban was lifted in 2024 after rigorous safety audits, the damage to Pakistan’s aviation reputation was profound.
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