KARACHI: Hundreds of sacked employees of a privately-owned Pakistani power utility, the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC), demonstrated on the second day outside its office behind Sunset Boulevard in the Defence Housing Scheme Aaj TV reported on Friday.
The utility sacked more than 4,000 employees as a downsizing move, which caused violent protests as they chanted slogans against the management and demanded an immediate withdrawal of the decision.
On Thursday, the National Labor Federation (NLF) strongly condemned the sacking of the KESC employees and termed it an economic genocide of 4000 families.
NLF President Rafiq Ahmed Khan said the government is not concerned about the plight of the poor. He said the recent spree of privatization and downsizing has increased poverty and deprivation in Pakistan.
He said poor families are committing suicides or selling their children. He said rising price hike has already made it very difficult for workers to feed their children and now the forced retrenchments have made life a living hell for the affected families.
He said the rulers should learn lesson from recent revolution in Tunisia, where poor masses took to streets, forcing the corrupt rulers to flee.
He said due to rampant corruption and mismanagement of Pakistani rulers the country is heading towards a bloody revolution. Rafiq Khan condemned police baton charge and teargas shelling on sacked workers of KESC. He demanded of the KESC to restore the sacked workers at the earliest.
Meanwhile, Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Chief Altaf Hussain called for immediate reinstatement of all the sacked employees of KESC.
Altaf Hussain said that the administration must restore all the employees to their positions, according to a statement issued by MQM here on Thursday.
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