Activists protest ‘anti-people’ budget in Karachi

KARACHI: Representatives of workers and rights activists rejected the recent anti-people budget and government's agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and announced to observe a 'black day' on July 6.

Addressing a press conference in Karachi Press Club on Wednesday, they said that the new fiscal year's budget was the worst in the history of Pakistan. They said that the budget had been dictated by the IMF, which is a shackle of slavery for the 200 million people of this country and will result in economic and political bankruptcy of Pakistan. They said that more than 70 million labourers of Pakistan reject it outright.

Nasir Mansoor, the deputy general secretary of National Trade Union Federation Pakistan (NTUF), said that the incumbent regime has sold Pakistan and its people to the IMF for just $6 billion.

Habibuddin Junaidi, the president of Sindh Peoples Labour Bureau, said that the value of the rupee has depreciated by more than 35% on the dictation of IMF, while the real income of people has decreased by more than 50%.

Zehra Khan, the general secretary of Home Based Women Workers Federation (HBWWF), said that both villages and cities have been deprived of basic facilities. Karachi is facing a severe shortage of water. Its public transport, healthcare, education, water and sewerage sectors are in shambles. She said that in this grim scenario, the opposition parties are paying only lip service and they too have disappointed the people of Pakistan. 

Published in The Express Tribune, July 5^th, 2019.