Underprivileged: Women in Swat demand BISP cards be unblocked

Accuse Marvi Memon of failing to help

MINGORA: Women from various areas of Swat protested against their Benazir Income Support Programme cards being blocked. They accused BISP Chairperson Marvi Memon of failing to facilitate the poor and threatened to continue their protest if demands were not met.

Standing outside Swat Press Club on Monday, the women said during Marvi Memon’s visit to Swat, BISP Provincial Coordinator Naseem Akhtar vowed to provide Rs25,000 each to affected women and to unblock cards by February 1. They said BISP authorities, including Marvi Memon, failed to fulfil their promise to facilitate the card subscribers. They stated women visited the BISP office several times but in vain as their cards were still blocked.

Meanwhile, 85-year-old Bakht Raza, who was one of the affected women, said “My card has been blocked for over a year now and I have no other source of income to run my house.”

Another irate protester, Rubina said, “People are playing politics but we want our right and we will continue to protest.”  On the occasion, former district councillor Shah Ezzat told The Express Tribune, “BISP cards of more than 30,000 women in Swat have been blocked.” He lamented, “The affected women belong to poor and underprivileged families.” He urged the government to unblocked the cards on priority.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 16^th, 2016.