Raising visibility: Young PTI supporters come out in force against govt

Party leader says ANP has failed in its claim to provide free electricity.

PESHAWAR: Fed-up with incessant power outages and price hikes, activists of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf staged a protest demonstration on Saturday outside the Peshawar Press Club.

The protesters, led by PTI’s former Peshawar district president Tausif Khan, held banners and placards inscribed with anti-government slogans and insisting that officials should step down for their utter failure. They also resorted to full-throated sloganeering, demanding the government to overcome the menace of power outages.

Khan, while addressing the protesters, came down hard upon the government for failing to solve the energy crisis and said that the government was hoodwinking people by making false promises. “The energy crisis has broken the backbone of the country’s economy,” he said.

He said that the crisis had brought routine life to a standstill, making it difficult for people to carry out their day-to-day business. “It is unjust to subject the province to 18 hours of power suspension,” he said.

“The crisis could have been overcome had the government taken effective and result-oriented steps,” he said, adding that power cuts have led to closure of industry in the province, which in turn has created a shortage of commodities and high inflation in the market.

Referring to the provincial government, he said that the so-called nationalists have to fulfil the claim of providing free electricity to people. “The provincial government has been unable to reduce duration of power outages, let alone ensuring free provision,” he said.

He said that the Awami National Party-led provincial coalition had failed to live up to the expectations of the people, adding that they had failed to save the people from inflation, provide them jobs and restore law and order.

He alleged that public welfare funds were embezzled and record corruption had been done by ministers and their cronies.

Talking about the growing popularity of PTI, he said that winds of change have started blowing as people are joining the party in bulk. He urged the people to vote for PTI in the next general elections so that the country can be steered out of its prevailing crises.