Thousands march against LG law

Sirajul Haq says Jamat will fight the case of Karachi across Pakistan

KARACHI:

Tens of thousands of people in Karachi marched on MA Jinnah Road from the mausoleum of Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah to Tibet Center against the Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Act.

According to the opposition parties in the province, the controversial legislation is aimed at squeezing the administrative and financial powers of city governments. People belonging to all walks of life participated in the march

. Representatives from trade bodies, professional fraternities, business and industries and various sectors came out to join the march on the call of the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI).

On the occasion, protesters, including women, children and senior citizens chanted slogans against the unjust policies and the controversial bill The PPP government in Sindh bulldozed the controversial bill twice in the Sindh Assembly despite opposition of the bill by all the opposition parties.

JI Pakistan Ameer Sirajul Haq, in his address to the protesters, asked the Sindh chief minister to devolve the relevant powers to local governments.

He said that the JI will be fighting the case of Karachi across the country if the PPP government fails to fulfill its obligation. He also mentioned that the people of Gawader compelled the ruling regime in the province to pay heed to their demands, with the help of their unity and resolute commitment.

Similarly, he said, the ruling regime in Sindh will have to bow down before demands of Karachiites. He said that the people of Karachi have the back of the JI and the party will not let Karachiites on mercy of the PPP government.

Karachi is the mother of all cities and provides the major chunk of revenue to the state but unfortunately all political parties, including the PTI, the PML-N, the PPP and the MQM plundered its resources but never delivered.

A progressed and developed Karachi will ensure a progressed and developed Pakistan, he added. The JI's supreme leader said that the people of Karachi have launched a just, lawful and constitutional struggle for their due rights. He said that the people in Karachi were demanding facilities for education, health, livelihood, transport, potable water, electricity and gas.

He further said that the episode of deprivation and injustice against the people of Karachi should come to an end. Sirajul Haq said that a mayor equipped with powers of only brooming the roads would be of no use for Karachi - a city of some 30 million people.

Referring to the authorities of mayors in Istanbul, London and other international cities, he said that all the powers have been centered into the chair of chief minister in Sindh and if the situation prevails it would not help in resolving local issues. He said that the PPP government in Sindh should not have bulldozed the controversial bill in the Sindh Assembly; instead the regime should have devolved the powers to local bodies.

The JI chief said that only the JI has the capability to transform Karachi and put it on the right track. He further said that Karachi had enjoyed a remarkable era of progress and development during the tenures of Nematullah Khan and Abdul Sattar Afghani.

The JI can bring back the golden era, he said. JI Karachi chief Engr Hafiz Naeemur Rehman in his address said that the march made it clear that the city would not tolerate imposition of feudalism.

The PPP will have to withdraw the black law, he said. On the occasion, Engr Naeem announced that the party will be cordoning off the Sindh Assembly in protest against the controversial bill on December 31, 2021 if the provincial government didn't withdraw the bill.

The JI leader also asked the federal and provincial governments and those in the corridors of powers about progress on the Karachi Transformation Plan.

JI leader Dr Osama Razi also addressed the march. He said that the Save Karachi March and the Karachi Rights Movement have set a new dimension for politics in the city.