PPP, MQM trade barbs over Karachi’s water shortage

Karachi
It was another day of commotion in the provincial assembly on Tuesday as the lawmakers of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party and the opposition Muttahida Qaumi Movement traded barbs over the persistent water shortage in Karachi.
MQM lawmakers kept shouting the phrase “tuchi harkatain”, an Urdu slang term best described as “unethical activities”, and at one stage, information and local government minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, perhaps unfamiliar with it, was seen asking what it meant.
Memon became infuriated over MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar’s allegation at a recent press conference that the minister was responsible for the water crisis in the city.
Sattar had said the local government minister was resorting to “tuchi harkatain” by demolishing wedding halls belonging to MQM leaders and firing Karachi Municipal Corporation employees.
Memon suggested that a committee comprising MPAs should be formed to determine whether or not he was at fault in managing the city’s water supply affairs.
“Is it an unethical activity to demolish illegal wedding halls or construct them on public parks?” he asked. “Similarly, is it an unethical activity to fire ghost employees or advocating for them?”
Memon rued that the MQM had not chosen to participate in the committee formed by him to look into the water distribution system.
The committee comprises journalists, businessmen, industrialists, the Karachi commissioner and political parties.
“The committee formed sometime ago has been fully empowered to run the water distribution system and if somebody is at fault, it can order the removal of any official including the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board chief too,” the minister said.
Giving details, Memon said the water crisis had aggravated as against the demand of 1,000 million gallons daily (MGD), only 550 MGD was available. He added that 100 MGD from the Hub Dam was unavailable as there had been no rains in its catchment area for the last several months.
He pointed out that the prevailing problems had been acknowledged by Sattar at his press conference too.
A heated argument ensued between the treasury and opposition benches when MQM MPA Muhammad Hussain Khan moved an adjournment motion for discussing the issue of the water shortage in Karachi and later a short-notice question was presented on the issue.
Speaker Agha Siraj Khan Durrani admitted the motion and ruled that the House would hold a proper debate on it in its sitting on May 8.
Presenting his argument over his adjournment motion, the MPA said the crisis in the city had worsened to the extent that some areas were without water for the last one year.
MQM MPA Saifuddin Khalid in his short-notice question also raised the issue.
The leader of the opposition, MQM’s Khawaja Izhar-ul-Hassan, said the problem was being felt across the city.
“The residents of New Karachi and North Karachi will take to the streets and those living in DHA and Clifton, who are equally affected by the crisis, will lodge their protests by calling up their areas’ civic officials and elected representatives,” he said.
The opposition leader also objected over Memon unduly mentioning MQM leader Dr Farooq Sattar as he was not a member of the provincial assembly but an MNA.
He said the speaker had earlier ruled that statements about MNAs from Sindh should not be made in the House as they were not present in the provincial assembly.
Hassan said the water crisis had worsened so much that MQM delegations would start visiting the installations and pumping stations of KWSB from Wednesday (today) for a first-hand and factual account of the water supply situation there.
On Memon’s allegation that the MQM had not participated in the committee to oversee the water crisis, the opposition leader said he twice informed on a very short-notice to attend its meetings and he had no time to prepare or gather his colleagues for them.

Rumpus again
Earlier, there was agitation in the House for the second consecutive day when the legislators of three opposition political parties, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, Pakistan Muslim League-Functional and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf again tried to move a resolution against MQM chief Altaf Hussain’s speech in which he had passed controversial remarks against the army and the integrity of Sindh.
However, their demand was again turned down by the chair.
The lawmakers resorted to protesting in the House as they were not allowed to speak or move their anti-MQM resolution. Durrani said he could not allow the moving of a private resolution on the issue as a seven-day prior notice had to be given to the secretary of the assembly for the presentation of such a resolution.
The speaker advised the lawmakers of the three parties to first submit their resolution in the secretariat of the assembly as per the rules of procedure of the assembly.
The lawmakers of these parties had a heated exchange of words with education minister Nisar Ahmed Khuhro.
The minister said the PML-N and the PML-F had their lawmakers in the National Assembly in Islamabad and they should first move such a resolution there and then in the provincial assembly.
“The Pakistan People’s Party is the ruling party in Sindh and it knows better as to how to defend the integrity of Sindh as the division of the province wouldn’t be tolerated at any cost,” he added.
When the opposition lawmakers kept on protesting, the speaker warned them that a disqualification reference could be sent against them.

Cricket matches in Karachi
On a point of order, the leader of the opposition said cricket matches should also be scheduled in Karachi when the Zimbabwean team arrived in the country.
“All the matches should not be held in Lahore as the law and order situation is improving in Karachi,” he added.