Karachiites pay Rs3256 bn taxes, posting 29pc annual increase, yet deprived of basic facilities’: JI Leader
Staff Report
KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi Ameer Munem Zafar Khan has urged Karachiites to standup for their own rights and asked them to offer resistance against the Pakistan People Party in Sindh while highlighting 52,000 traffic challan in just two months, use of excessive force, impounded bikes, arrogance and bribery on part of the traffic police as well as the heavy taxation against zero services.
The JI leader expressed these views while addressing a press conference held at Idara Noor-e-Haq — the JI Karachi headquarters, here on Thursday.
On the occasion, he also chided Inspector General of Police (IGP), Sindh Ghulam Nabi Memon over threatening Karachiites with doubling fines, cancelling licenses and blocking CNICs for delay in paying fines.
He dubbed the most controversial statements as insult to the people. What would you do if citizens couldn’t pay fine in 200 days? Do you rip them or of citizenship or kicked them out of the country? He asked at the presser while addressing the IGP. All the strictness, rules and regulations are for Karachiites but what about facilities? he quoined a question. Do you know how Karachiites are surviving, he asked.
He also condemned the traffic police for targeting bikers and said that the majority of Karachiites use 4.5 million bikes as means of transportation. He urged the youth to use a helmet, keep the license and follow traffic rules but never accept injustice of corruption.
The JI leader announced that the party would establish a help desk at all the district offices to support the victims of traffic police.
Instead of focusing on facilities, including Zebra Crossing, footpaths, pavements and traffic signals, the government and the traffic police were only focusing on challans and the situation was resulting in acute unrest, particularly among the youth, he said.
The JI leader further said that the feudal mindset in the PPP wants to handle the people like they are slaves. He vowed that the JI would continue to show a mirror to the ruling PPP until and unless it mend its ways.
Talking about the tax regime, he quoted the statistics by the tax office that Karachiites paid Rs3256 billion in taxes, posting a bumper increase of 29.46 percent, and added that yet Karachiites were kept deprived of their due rights and basic facilities. The city that pays the lion’s share in taxation was ignored by all quarters, he expressed his sorrow.
The city was demanding just Rs40 billion for completion of the much needed K4 water supply project but was denied and just Rs3.2bn were allocated, practically placing it on backburner so it would become dormant, he said. The Rs26bn project was kept in limbo for the past 22 years, hiking its cost to almost Rs200 billion, he added.
The JI leader also highlighted the post rains situation in the mega city and made it clear that the water and sewerage corporation worked under the PPP government in Sindh and its chairman; Murtaza Wahab and not towns or union council.
Strongly lambasting the water and sewerage corporation, he questioned the job description and purpose of its existence, if the corporation was supposed to do nothing. The Sindh government received Rs1.6 billion dollar to uplift the water and sewerage in the province, yet the situation was indifferent.
On the occasion, he also highlighted the issue of traffic in Karachi and said that the mega city needs a proper mass transit system, comprised of at least 10,000 busses, light train and circular railway, whereas just 300 busses were brought to the city during the past 17 years.
