KARACHI is once again witnessing a surge in extortion incidents, prompting the Karachi Chamber of Commerce and Industry to issue an advisory to its members, urging heightened vigilance and stricter security measures.
According to a letter circulated by the KCCI to its members, several traders have recently received extortion slips accompanied by live bullets — a disturbing trend that the chamber described as a serious threat not only to the business community but also to Karachi’s overall law and order situation.
The alert issued by the KCCI to its members is, in fact, indicative of lack of trust in the ability of the federal and provincial governments to ensure security, which is one of the fundamental responsibilities of any government. The advice to members to ensure heightened vigilance and stricter security measures invariably means traders should take care of their own security and that of their businesses. Under these circumstances how can we attract investors and increase the pace of industrial and business activities and that too in a metropolis rightly considered as the economic and financial hub of the country. Karachi was once a peaceful city, then slipped into chaos due to large-scale gruesome crimes and a sense of normalcy returned following the effective operation launched by the law enforcing agencies against hardcore criminals. However, the latest development shows the city is once again witnessing a rise in crimes with consequences for the national economy. Identification and elimination of such criminals should not be a big challenge for the authorities concerned in this age of modern technologies and gadgets, therefore, they should move firmly to restore the confidence of the business community.
