130,000 Wapda, electricity workers protest privatisation countrywide

LAHORE: Around 130,000 electricity and Wapda workers observed protest day countrywide under the aegis of All Pakistan Wapda Hydroelectric Workers Union (CBA) by holding protest rallies in Peshawar and other cities of KP, Hyderabad, Sukkur and other cities of Sindh, in Quetta and other cities of Balochistan, and in Rawalpindi, Gujranwala, Faisalabad, Multan and other cities of Punjab.

In Lahore, thousands of workers held a mass rally outside the Punjab Assembly and demanded from the prime minister to intervene and reduce the prices of essential commodities including petrol and diesel and raise the wages and pension of the working class by at least 30% which have not been raised for more than one and a half year.

They demanded from the government to take measures to raise productivity of the electricity distribution companies and profitable national power houses such as Guddu and Nandipur and do not privatise them. There are almost 40 million electricity consumers, electricity labour leaders pointed out.

The privatisation of Karachi Electric Supply Company and the private companies of Rawalpindi and Multan have already failed miserably and the government has acknowledged that. Khurshid Ahmed, general secretary of the union while addressing the workers highlighted that the electricity workers had been performing their duties at the risk of their lives. The nature of their work is most hazardous and round-the-clock. Hundreds of them have met with accidents as they are overworked due to shortage of line staff. No recruitment has been made since many years.

While the workers have got registered scores of FIRs against electricity theft, not a single accused has been punished, Khurshid Ahmed pointed out. He demanded the government to fill the vacant posts to prevent further accidents of line staff and protect the field staff against lawless elements.

He urged the premier to reduce 50 to 60 percent high profits of private independent power houses causing Rs860 billion circular debt, in order to reduce the rate of electricity tariffs for masses. He reminded the premier that although Rs500 million each had been allocated for National and provincial assemblies members, it is also government’s obligation to ease the financial burden of the downtrodden and working class, address aggravating unemployment and irrational widening gap between the rich and poor in the society as pledged by Quaid-i-Azam. He warned in case the government does not hold a meaningful dialogue with the union, the workers will be compelled to march to Islamabad in support of their demands.