Daily Times

KARACHI: An upgraded educational facility, located at Labour Square Bin Qasim Town, Karachi has not been completed due to political rivalry between some rival groups for last eight years.

Ironically, the then provincial minister for prisons and Pakistan People Party (PPP)’s leader, Muzafar Ali Shujra had laid down the foundation stone to upgrade the state-run primary school (Sindhi Meduim) up to meddle level, situated in Marri Baloch Goth near Labour Square in 2009. At that time, it was also decided that a higher secondary school would be also constructed on the same site.

Unfortunately a few months after the former minister for prisons had laid the foundation stone some political dominant people of the area started claiming the site of construction as their property and forced the construction work to stop . The irony is that there is no state-run high chool or college which exists around both the areas, Marri Baloch Goth and Labour Square.

“Majority of the Labour Square’s residents are of working class , their parents want that their children to be well educated but government high schools and colleges are situated in Malir Town or are in Korangi Town which is a distance of around 15 to 20 kilometer from the Labour Square”, Anawar Ahmed, a senior teacher in the area told Daily Times, adding that more than 600 students which are enrolled in the Government Secondary School Labour Square, which means that parents are keen and interested to send their children to be thought in schools.

“Private schools are using various tactics for extortion of more and more money from the students, which is impossible for a factory worker to coup up with “, revealing the financial situation of Labour Square’s residents, adding that if the students of the would area find education at their door steps it would be a compassionate care for labourers’ children.

“Education is important in the elimination of racism and discrimination but the children of Labour Square are deprived of even intermediate classes because some politically influential people are an obstacle in the construction of any college or higher secondary school for the poor children”, Rashid Ahmed, a resident of Labour Square informed , adding that education of the children should not be affected on the basis of political differences and ethnicity.

Muhammad Iqbal, general councilor of Labour Square’s union committee said that political situation of the area is totally weird because Member of National Assembly, Sajid Jokhio is the leader of Muttahida Quami Movement-Pakistan, Member of Provincial Assembly; Shafi Muhammad Jamot is the leader of Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and majority of the councilors belong to Pakistan Peoples Party. Therefore they are not coming together and are ready to resolve the problems of the locality.

He said further that everyone knows the financial affairs of Karachi Metropolitan Corporation therefore it is worthless to expect that KMC would construct a high school in the area.