In protest: NA-18 residents decry gruelling load shedding

Protest against PM’s son-in-law and Wapda authorities

MANSEHRA: Hundreds of residents from Lasan Nawab and its surrounding areas of Tanawal staged a protest on Thursday against MNA Captain (Retd) Safdar, the federal government and Water and Power Development Authority (Wapda) over frequent
power outages.

The stick-wielding villagers also tried to meet the DC, but his staff locked the office.

To raise a voice against frequent power outages in Lasan Nawab Sahib and surrounding areas, electorates of NA-18 staged a protest demonstration.

When the protesters were unable to gain access to the DC’s office, they marched onto the neighboring building of the Mansehra Press Club where they held a sit-in.



Speaking on this occasion, former union councillor Waheed Anjum said Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif had recently announced an end to unscheduled load-shedding in the country. Despite this announcement, he said villagers continued to suffer power outages of up to 18 hours a day.

Anjum added that excessive load-shedding was severely affecting routine activities of villagers. He claimed that residents paid their bills and the area had a 100% recovery ratio, but Wapda was still persisting with long spells of load-shedding to compensate for line losses.

The former councillor demanded that Wapda officials involved in unscheduled load-shedding should be taken to task. The protesters further called for privatising Wapda, claiming that the root cause of their troubles lay with the utility’s employees.

The protesters also chanted slogans against the PM
and his son-in-law Captain (Retd) Safdar.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 11^th, 2016.