KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Amir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday announced an indefinite sit-in outside the Sindh Assembly from February 14, stating that their ‘Let Karachi Live’ march had served as a final warning against what he termed persistent injustice faced by the megacity’s residents.
Addressing a large march on Shahrah-e-Faisal, he said their proposed sit-in would continue until all demands were accepted, recalling that assurances given during previous protests had not been implemented. He demanded that key civic institutions, including the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board and the Water Corporation, be placed under a fully empowered city government.
He maintained that neither provincial status nor federal control was the solution to Karachi’s problems, stressing that the Constitution envisages an empowered local government with full financial and administrative authority. He also called for similar empowered local governments across all provinces.
Criticising the major political parties, Rehman described them as dynastic entities rather than democratic political parties, arguing that family-based politics had weakened democratic norms. He said such forces should not be mistaken for genuine political parties.
Referring to the Gul Plaza tragedy, he questioned why President Asif Ali Zardari, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had not visited the site, despite Karachi contributing 42 per cent of national taxes and 54 per cent of export revenue. He also questioned how thousands of illegal buildings were constructed without approval from the Sindh Building Control Authority, calling the system corrupt and accountable to the top leadership.
He said town and union council representatives should be given authority over water supply, sewerage and sanitation, reiterating that an empowered local government system was the only viable solution to Karachi’s long-standing issues.
Commenting on broader unrest, he said injustice gives rise to anger, which hostile forces exploit, citing examples from Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
However, JI Karachi Chief Monem Zafar Khan said the massive turnout on Shahrah-e-Faisal reflected the public’s resolve that there would be no compromise on Karachi’s rights, particularly the right to live with dignity.
The march concluded with a declaration that Karachi’s residents would continue their movement until they secured their constitutional rights to live with dignity.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2026
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