My Karachi–Oasis of Harmony Exhibition inaugurated: Won’t allow anybody to disturb peace in Karachi: CM

KARACHI: Referring to the recent Saddar blast that claimed the life of a 24-year old man and injured 10 others, Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah said that the Sindh government would not let the bad times return to Karachi and would track down terrorists in every area of Karachi to root out them, completely.

“Even a single murder in the province is unacceptable and cannot be tolerated. I strongly believe that terrorists have no religion or language. They aren’t Pakistanis or even humans”, he added while speaking at the inauguration ceremony of the 17th My Karachi – Oasis of Harmony Exhibition here at the Karachi Expo Centre on Friday,

Sindh Minister for Industries & Commerce Jam Ikramullah Khan Dharejo, Sindh Minister for Labour Saeed Ghani, Special Assistant to Chief Minister Waqar Mehdi, Commissioner Karachi Muhammad Iqbal Memon, Chairman Businessmen Group Zubair Motiwala, Vice Chairman BMG Jawed Bilwani, General Secretary BMG AQ Khalil, President KCCI Muhammad Idrees, Senior Vice President Abdul Rehman Naqi, Vice President Qazi Zahid Hussain, KCCI Managing Committee Members and a large number of diplomats and senior bureaucrats attended the inauguration ceremony.

Chief Minister stated that after 2013 when the city was on the 7th position amongst the most dangerous cities in the world, peace and stability had returned to Karachi and the city was in a better place in the crime index. The entire nation collectively fought terrorism, he said.

While praising the leadership of Businessmen Group and paying glowing tribute to Late Siraj Kassam Teli for his commendable contribution, Murad Ali Shah also appreciated all the exhibitors, diplomats, and other participants, saying that the exhibition will certainly prove to be fruitful as Karachi is a vibrant city with tremendous potential. “Today’s house full at the Expo Centre and the presence of so many diplomats clearly indicates that they all believe in the people of Pakistan and their resilience.”

He said, “I know a lot of people won’t agree with me but I am saying this from the bottom of my heart that Karachi, which contributes 70 percent to the national exchequer, has the potential to even contribute 90 percent. We want the remaining Sindh and Pakistan to develop as well and pay more taxes. I belong to Sehwan and would like to see Sehwan developing to such an extent that it also contributes 70 percent revenue”.

Chairman BMG Zubair Motiwala, in his remarks, said that despite the recent blast, the house was full at the Expo Centre with the presence of Chief Minister, provincial ministers and diplomats at My Karachi exhibition shows the resilience of the city’s business community.

“Karachi will continue to exhibit resilience and we will never succumb to what the terrorists and other anti-state elements have been doing,” he said and requested the diplomats to convey this message of resilience and also the city’s potential displayed at the exhibition to their respective countries.

While paying glowing tribute to Late Siraj Teli for his matchless services not only to the business community but also to Karachiites, he said that the Karachi Chamber and all the BMGIANs were following the footsteps of Siraj Teli who will always be remembered for his bravery and contribution.

He pointed out that Karachi with a population of just 10 percent of the country’s total population contributes more than 54 percent in terms of exports. He feared that this share would go down as some people don’t want to see a speedy growth in Karachi and hence, energy crises have been triggered and there is no gas available to industries while RLNG is also not being provided which is unfair and not making any sense.

Appreciating the exhibitors for setting up stalls in a challenging environment wherein Expo Centre’s ACs were hardly functional and there was no electricity last night, he stressed that Expo Centre needs to be improved and expanded as this was the place where the business community dedicatedly promotes Pakistani made products and services. “The industrial zones of Karachi also need government’s attention as these zones are in a really bad shape,” he added.

To resolve the issues being faced by the business community, Chairman BMG requested the Chief Minister to regularly hold meetings with KCCI’s delegation even for an hour so that the issues could be brought to CM’s notice and get promptly resolved. He also appreciated Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto for holding a meeting with the business community of Karachi, listening to their problems, and assuring them to get them resolved.

President KCCI Muhammad Idrees said that since its inception in 2004, ‘My Karachi’ kept improving every year and it was a challenging task to stage this huge show in just three available halls but all-out efforts were made to accommodate as many stalls as possible. “A total of more than 250 stalls have been established in all three halls and outer area of the Expo centre”, he informed and appreciated all the exhibitors for regularly participating and supporting this major event.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022