Karachi Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Munem Zafar has strongly condemned the Pakistan Peoples Party government in Sindh, the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation and the K-Electric for their dismal performance and inability to handle the rain in the city. The JI leader said that the Sindh government, KMC and KE turned the blessing of rain into a curse for Karachiites.
He added that prolonged loadshedding and traffic jams during the rain compelled Karachiites to face agony and stress. He said that Karachiites have already been paying the price for criminal negligence on part of the provincial government, the KMC and the KE.
The JI and other quarters have warned the government over post-rain situations in the city but it has badly failed to act accordingly, he added. Zafar further said that the open sewerage and broken drains in the city have become death traps for Karachiites. It is a very serious issue but the government never responds to it in a serious manner, he remarked.
Several children among 25 Karachiites have lost their lives due to open sewerage holes during the past one year, he said, adding that instead of realizing the gravity of the issue, the government not only curtailed the budget for clearing the major drains in Karachi but also delayed the release of funds in this regard.
He said the KMC failed to complete the cleanliness work ahead of monsoon season and now the Karachiites were facing an alarming situation. He urged the government and the authorities to play their due role on a war footing in order to avoid any further untoward incident.
A day earlier, the leader of the opposition in the City Council, Saifuddin Advocate, has criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party government for its failure to resolve problems of Karachi’s people and said that Karachiites have been the main victim of bad governance and corruption. Talking to the media at his office on Friday, the JI leader recalled that earlier the mandate of Karachiites was stolen by the Pakistan Peoples Party and later the system was crippled by the regime.
He elaborated that the union council chairmen were unable to exercise their powers even after one year and even the opposition leader was provided with an office after one year he joined the position. Saifuddin further said that the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf and the JI had been constituting a majority in the city council, but the PPP — the minority — was enjoying powers and the majority was pushed to opposition benches. He alleged that corruption and bribery have been ruling in the local government institutions by the grace of the PPP. He further alleged that officers get the postings of their will against heavy bribes.
He said that the mayor was still acting like an undemocratic, appointed administrator and he did not know how to deliver or how to produce results, he added. He shed light in detail on the burning issues of Karachi, and said that none of them were addressed by the ruling regime.
During a meeting of parliamentary leaders of the City Council held at his office earlier this week, Saifuddin Advocate had said the current water crisis and mounting garbage heaps in Karachi clearly indicated the failure of both the Karachi Water and Sewerage Corporation and the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board. The meeting, convened by Saifuddin, and it aimed to address grievances related to water supply, solid waste management and other critical matters. Notable attendees included Najmi Alam from the Pakistan Peoples Party, Munashir Hafizul Haq from the Pakistan Tehreek-e Insaf and Mohammad Feroz from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz.
During the meeting, the JI leader criticised the ineffectiveness of the water and sewerage corporation and the solid waste management authorities, describing their performance as deeply disappointing. He stressed the urgency of placing these departments under the oversight of elected representatives at the level of union committees. He proposed that parliamentary leaders of the local government should arrange a meeting with senior officials from the two organisations to devise a mechanism where local government representatives could actively monitor the operations of these agencies.
