Federal govt is anti-Karachi, say PPP leaders

KARACHI: The leaders of Pakistan People’s Party have said that the federal government is anti-Karachi and they are responsible for the persistent and worsening gas and electricity crises in the city.

The PPP leaders made the claim on Tuesday while addressing a protest organized by the provincial ruling party, outside the head office of Sui Southern Gas Company against the massive shortage of gas and electricity in the province. They also announced holding a similar demonstration at the head office of K-Electric against prolonged and recurring power failures in the city.

A large number of workers and supporters of the PPP attended the demonstration and many of them were holding placards inscribed with slogans against the alleged apathy of the federal government towards power and gas supply woes of the people of Sindh. They also raised slogans against the natural gas shortfall in the province.

Addressing on the occasion, Sindh Education and Labour Minister Saeed Ghani said that energy needs of the entire country were met through the natural gas produced in Sindh. “Despite this, our industries and households are deprived and this situation is not acceptable to us. We are responsible for Karachi as we will not remain silent anymore against this injustice,” said Ghani, who is also the PPP Karachi Chapter president.

Ghani said owing to the sheer inefficiency of the federal government, the lives of people of Karachi have simply become miserable who have to brave massive curtailment of gas and electric supply. Criticising the K-Electric, he said it had also agonized the people by resorting to massive loadshedding.

He said the people are facing double jeopardy as besides the shortages, the tariff of both the utilities has gone up manifold.He said that the federal government was violating the Constitution by denying due amount of gas to Sindh from where it was generated and supplied to the country. The minister said the incumbent prime minister was totally indifferent to the miseries of people of Karachi.

The minister claimed that people of Karachi would vote in favour of the ruling PPP if polls were held in the city transparently. “Karachi was ours and it will remain ours,” he claimed. Ghani announced that similar demonstrations will also be held in other towns and cities of Sindh.