‘Where is the amount Karachi pays in taxes spent?’

KARACHI: Mayor Karachi Wasim Akhtar on Monday said that the people of Karachi pay 65 percent and 95 percent taxes to the federal and Sindh governments, respectively. He asked as to where these amounts were spent.

“I am ready to tender my resignation, if someone assures that the issues would be resolved with my resignation. I am serving in extremely difficult circumstances,” the mayor said while talking to the media outside the Supreme Court’s Karachi Registry here. Akhtar said that he was implicated in fabricated cases and was nominated in dozens of FIRs despite being the mayor. “I have been raising my voice for the last four years for empowerment of local bodies across the country.”

According to a press statement from the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC), Akhtar said that the Chief Justice of Pakistan rightly expressed his displeasure over of the situation of Karachi which had deteriorated especially in the last 12 years. He said that no one could deliver with the power under which he was serving. The tenure of the incumbent local government is ending on August 28 and he is not seeing the next local government polls soon.

“I request the Chief Justice of Pakistan to hear my petition filed for empowerment of local bodies under Article 140-A of the Constitution. The situation might have been different had the petition was taken up,” the mayor said. Akhtar said that 70 per cent part of the city was controlled by the federal government while 20 percent was under the provincial government’s control, adding that the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation has control of just 10 per cent of the city. He was of the view that all powers of the KMC, including building control, master plan, transport, solid waste management and other civic departments were controlled by the Sindh government.

“Even the power of drains’ cleanliness was snatched from the KMC and the provincial government had formed different authorities under its control,” he added. He said that the voice of Karchiites were not being listened at any level and no one seemed bothered in resolving issues of the city.

The mayor was of the view that Karachi was being neglected deliberately. Karachi is the revenue engine of Pakistan and if its economy is destroyed, how would the federal and provincial government run. Akhtar said that non locals are being imposed on Karachi and they cannot solve issues of the city as they were unaware of the same.

“The people would keep suffering from issues of sewerage, transport, water scarcity and other problems until locals of the city are given power,” he added.He said that no department of the provincial government was performing its duties and that’s why the people were facing severe problems.