Call for LG polls in Karachi without delay

KARACHI: “Local Government elections must be conducted in Karachi without any further delay besides safe city project must be expedited in order control the crimes in city”.

These remarks were made by the members of the civil society at a press conference organized by Karachi Citizens’ Forum (KCF) held at PMA House here on Friday.

Convener KCG Nargis Rehman said the prime city of Pakistan did not have an elected mayor for years and municipal elections are deferred again and again.

She was flanked by former vice chancellor Sindh University Professor Fateh Muhammad Burfat, Advocate Zia Ahmed Awan and Mubashir Mir and General Secretary Pakistan Medical Association (PMA) Dr Qaiser Sajjad.

She said Karachi has been in the headlines for decades in the negative ranks of international indices amongst the ten most unlivable cities, worst cities, polluted cities, air polluted cities of the world.

Nargis said citizens feel unsafe travelling in cars, riding on scooters, and have forgotten to walk on the garbage laden, broken payments of the city, even in daylight.

In September 2022, she added that the announcement was made by the chief minister of Sindh, that Karachi would be sanctioned 30bn for the Karachi Safe City program, providing the needed technology and ten thousand CCTV cameras, police force enhancement to become not just a safe but also a smart city.

She was amazed that the prime city of Pakistan does not have an elected mayor for years and municipal elections are deferred again and again.

Zia Awan Said the courts judgments on Karachi are not being implemented and executed by the governments thus making the city more vulnerable to citizens.

“Full bench court should be set up for Karachi issues”, he suggested.

Dr Fateh Barfat said Karachi’s biggest problem is that nobody is taking its ownership, adding that the population of the city is countless.

Mubashir Mir and Dr Qaiser Sajjad also spoke on the occasion.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2022