Gas suspensions: Industrialists, traders take to streets
Traffic remains suspended as 3,000 protesters rally against 'discriminatory gas suspension'.
LAHORE:
Traffic on the Mall remained suspended for more than four hours on Monday as some 3,000 protesters staged a protest against what they call the discriminatory gas suspension for industries in the Punjab and the proposed imposition of Reformed General Sales Tax (RGST).
The rally started at 11 am in front of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) building and finished in front of the Governor’s House at around 2 pm. Led by the LCCI leaders, the protesters included representatives of industrialists’ and traders’ organisation from Lahore and Sheikhupura, the All Pakistan Anjum-i-Tajiran, the Qaumi Tajir Ittehad, the Lahore Township Industrial Area Association, the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association, the Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the Steel Melters’ Association, the Steel Re-rolling Mills Association, the All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association, the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers and the Exporters Association and All the Pakistan CNG Association.
Most of the protesters raised slogans against the federal government saying it was making anti-public policies. They carried banners and placards with their demands to resume gas supply and withdrawal of the RGST bill written on them.
The blockage of traffic on The Mall affected the traffic flow on Queen’s Road, Lawrence Road, Waris Road and Egerton Road, which witnessed traffic jams.
The protesters said that they would hold a series of similar demonstrations and possibly strikes if their demands were not fulfilled by the government.
They demanded that the government end the ‘discriminatory’ gas suspension. Some said that the Monday’s demonstration was the first warning for the government.
They said they would besiege the Prime Minister’s House if the gas suspension went on. They also criticised the proposed imposition of RGST and said that the government was responsible for the high prices and scarcity of commodities in the country. Labourers among the protesters said that they feared losing their jobs due to gas suspension.
LCCI president Shahzad Ali Malik told The Express Tribune that if the government did not pay head to their demands, they would be forced to continue the protest. He said their families would join the demonstrations if necessary.
He said, “The gas suspension plan is a conspiracy against the Punjab government… the people at the helm of affairs must take notice of it.” He accused the government of ‘economic massacre’ of the industrial workers by turning the province into a ‘trading place’ instead of a ‘manufacturing hub.’ The LCCI had been against the RGST from the very first day, he added.
Former LCCI president Mian Anjum Nisar said that it was not the industries alone that were suffering due to the suspension of gas. Owing to the wrong government policies, he said, the challenges for the business community were multiplying with every passing day, making day-to-day challenges harder to cope with. The industrialists, he warned, would not be able to pay their dues if appropriate measures were not taken immediately.
Industrialists participating in the protest said that industries were facing problems meeting the export schedules, which was affecting their prospects of new orders.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 7th, 2010.
Traffic on the Mall remained suspended for more than four hours on Monday as some 3,000 protesters staged a protest against what they call the discriminatory gas suspension for industries in the Punjab and the proposed imposition of Reformed General Sales Tax (RGST).
The rally started at 11 am in front of the Lahore Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) building and finished in front of the Governor’s House at around 2 pm. Led by the LCCI leaders, the protesters included representatives of industrialists’ and traders’ organisation from Lahore and Sheikhupura, the All Pakistan Anjum-i-Tajiran, the Qaumi Tajir Ittehad, the Lahore Township Industrial Area Association, the Pakistan Hosiery Manufacturers Association, the Pakistan Readymade Garments Manufacturers and Exporters Association, the Steel Melters’ Association, the Steel Re-rolling Mills Association, the All Pakistan Textile Processing Mills Association, the Pakistan Automotive Manufacturers and the Exporters Association and All the Pakistan CNG Association.
Most of the protesters raised slogans against the federal government saying it was making anti-public policies. They carried banners and placards with their demands to resume gas supply and withdrawal of the RGST bill written on them.
The blockage of traffic on The Mall affected the traffic flow on Queen’s Road, Lawrence Road, Waris Road and Egerton Road, which witnessed traffic jams.
The protesters said that they would hold a series of similar demonstrations and possibly strikes if their demands were not fulfilled by the government.
They demanded that the government end the ‘discriminatory’ gas suspension. Some said that the Monday’s demonstration was the first warning for the government.
They said they would besiege the Prime Minister’s House if the gas suspension went on. They also criticised the proposed imposition of RGST and said that the government was responsible for the high prices and scarcity of commodities in the country. Labourers among the protesters said that they feared losing their jobs due to gas suspension.
LCCI president Shahzad Ali Malik told The Express Tribune that if the government did not pay head to their demands, they would be forced to continue the protest. He said their families would join the demonstrations if necessary.
He said, “The gas suspension plan is a conspiracy against the Punjab government… the people at the helm of affairs must take notice of it.” He accused the government of ‘economic massacre’ of the industrial workers by turning the province into a ‘trading place’ instead of a ‘manufacturing hub.’ The LCCI had been against the RGST from the very first day, he added.
Former LCCI president Mian Anjum Nisar said that it was not the industries alone that were suffering due to the suspension of gas. Owing to the wrong government policies, he said, the challenges for the business community were multiplying with every passing day, making day-to-day challenges harder to cope with. The industrialists, he warned, would not be able to pay their dues if appropriate measures were not taken immediately.
Industrialists participating in the protest said that industries were facing problems meeting the export schedules, which was affecting their prospects of new orders.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 7th, 2010.