JI distributes manhole covers

Slams civic authorities over negligence, says party has installed 35,000 covers in 2.5 years

KARACHI:

Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) Karachi Chief Monem Zafar on Sunday described open manholes across the city as "death traps" for citizens, especially children, as the party distributed 1,000 manhole covers free of cost in Orangi Town.

Addressing a ceremony held opposite the ZMC office under JI District West, Monem Zafar said the in-stallation and maintenance of manhole covers was the responsibility of the Karachi Metropolitan Cor-poration and other relevant civic bodies. He alleged that due to "incompetence, corruption and negli-gence," citizens' lives remain at constant risk.

He said JI had gone beyond its political mandate to address public issues, claiming the party had in-stalled and distributed over 35,000 manhole covers in the past two and a half years. He urged residents to support JI for what he described as the betterment and safety of the city.

Other speakers included District West JI chief Mudassir Hussain Ansari, deputy chief Khalid Zaman, and UC-4 chairman Atta-e-Rabbi.

Monem Zafar noted that dozens of people, including many children, had died in recent years after fall-ing into uncovered manholes. He said such incidents were not accidents but the result of administra-tive failure, stressing that public safety must be treated as a collective responsibility.

Criticising the provincial government and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, he said the city's resi-dents were being deprived of basic civic facilities, with water supply, transport, sanitation, infrastruc-ture, and sewerage systems in poor condition.

He added that Karachi, despite being the country's economic hub, was being denied its basic rights, alleging that its resources were being mismanaged. He said JI would continue its struggle for the city's rights through legal, political, and public platforms.