Info minister slams ‘social media miscreants’ for mud-slinging against govt

Describing Monday’s heavy downpour as a “situation of natural calamity”, Sindh Information and Local Government Minister Syed Nasir Hussain Shah said the provincial ministers were doing public service in Karachi since the previous night’s heavy rain spell but at the same time "certain miscreants via twitter accounts and social media pages have been engaged in mud-slinging against” the conduct of the ministers.

The minister said this on Monday as he along with senior officials visited several affected areas of the city in the aftermath of the downpour. He, however, conceded that the situation in the city had not been normal up to a 100 per cent but said that “there is no doubt that the Sindh government’s representatives have been present on the ground among their people during the difficult time”.

“All of our municipal officials, up to the level of secretary local government and managing directors of the Karachi Water and Sewerage Board and the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board, have been constantly in touch with the people and their staffers and have been taking doing their work,” he said.

“We have no hesitation to state that the situation could have been a lot more adverse, had the Sindh government not taken timely steps of de-silting of the storm water drains in the city,” he added. “The provincial leaders have been doing their best to overcome this situation of the natural calamity," he said.

The minister appealed to the people that they should not venture outside their homes without any necessity as they should stay away from the electricity poles for their safety. He said the new spell of monsoon rain was even more torrential than the previous one. He said whether it was the issue of de-silting of storm water drains or the ritual of sacrificing animals over Eid-ul-Azha, the government had always taken on board the city’s municipal leadership to finalise the strategy.

Nasir claimed that the government for the last several months had been acting upon a comprehensive and composite strategy to deal with any eventuality with regard to monsoon rains.

“However, the human will could do nothing against the situation of these torrential rains and other natural calamities. Even the developed countries get affected by heavy rains,” he said. Meanwhile, the minister visited Surjani Town, Gulbuhar, Orangi Town, New Karachi, North Nazimabad and other areas to review the drainage of accumulated rainwater and urban flooding.