Clifton residents protest against garbage

Protesters voice concerns about the failure of civic agencies in the upscale neighbourhood

KARACHI: Hundreds of Clifton residents took to the streets on Sunday, staging a demonstration at Bilawal Chowrangi against the failure of civic agencies in removing garbage and resolving sewerage issues in the upscale neighbourhood.

Women, children and senior citizens took part in the peaceful protest organised to submit a memorandum to Pakistan Peoples Party co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari, maintaining that although his party had held power for seven years, the entire city had been reduced to a heap of garbage because of the inadequate response of the authorities.

"We are protesting because this situation is making our sons and daughters ill," said Umme Habiba, a resident of Clifton Block 4. "In order to save diesel, the civic agencies burn garbage at the seaside near Shireen Jinnah Colony even though the smoke is a health hazard, especially for children."

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf lawmaker Khurram Sher Zaman also participated in the demonstration. "This is the first time that residents of Karachi have protested against stagnant, contaminated water, overflowing gutters and piles of rubbish instead of target killings or inefficient government departments," he claimed while talking to The Express Tribune.

"We have submitted applications to the city commissioner and the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) administrator several times but they paid no heed," he said, adding that the government must hold local bodies elections as soon as possible. KMC municipal services director Masood Alam was unavailable for comments.

The CBC's efficiency

According to residents, matters are very different in Clifton Blocks 8 and 9, which fall under the jurisdiction of the Cantonment Board Clifton (CBC). "A single phone call can solve the problems in those two blocks," claimed Zaman. "The rest fall under the KMC's jurisdiction and they are merely taking their salaries without doing any work."

While talking to The Express Tribune, CBC spokesperson Amir Abdul Rab said that the board's sanitary staff worked without taking leave. "If anyone has problems regarding sanitation or sewerage, they should immediately register a complaint with us."

Published in The Express Tribune, February 2rd, 2015.