PTI took difficult decision to sit with Sindh govt for Karachi: Khurrum Sher Zaman

Leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Karachi chapter on Monday said the party’s top leadership had taken a difficult decision to sit with the provincial government for the development and betterment of Karachi.

Discussing the recent meetings between the leaders of the PTI, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), PTI Karachi President and MPA Khurrum Sher Zaman said the PPP’s provincial government had been treating Sindh, particularly Karachi, like a stepmother during the past 12 years of its rule.

“We think that the problems of the people should be solved in a democratic way,” said Zaman, addressing a press conference at the Insaf House, the party’s secretariat. PTI MPAs Dr Imran Ali Shah, Arsalan Taj, Dr Seema Zia and other leaders accompanied him.

He said PTI cared for the people of Karachi because residents of the metropolis had given it their mandate. “Now it is our responsibility to get the problems of Karachi fixed,” he added.

Zaman said that if a survey of Karachi was conducted today, the people of the city would want

an immediate administrative change. “PTI’s top leadership has decided that for a better future of Karachi. We should sit together because PPP does not have the people or the vision to improve the situation in the province.”

He said the PTI wanted clean drinking water to be provided to the citizens of Karachi. “Ending the rule of the tanker mafia in the city is a top priority of the committee formed for resolving Karachi’s civic issues.”

Zaman maintained that the PTI also wanted to establish a sanitation system of international standards in Karachi and eradicate corruption from the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board. The PTI wanted that Karachi had a good transport system, he said.

“It is the responsibility of the Sindh government's transport ministry to improve the city's transport system. At present Karachi city needs 6,000 to 7,000 buses.” The Orange Line, Yellow Line, Red Line — all the projects of the Sindh government had not been completed so far and the PTI could not sit quietly on all these issues, he remarked.

The PTI leader said that the Sindh chief minister had given a long speech in 2015 in which he said the Sindh government would give the Safe City project to Karachi and cameras would be installed all over the city. “Our question to the chief minister is what happened to your Safe City project? We want the Karachi Safe City project to be completed immediately.”

He also called for fixing the Sindh Building Control Authority and eradicating corruption there. Zaman said the provincial government had not formulated any master plan for Karachi that ran the entire country. “The PPP is responsible for the destruction of Karachi's local government system. We want the bill submitted by the PTI for the upcoming local bodies’ elections to be passed.”