Daily Times

KARACHI: Mr Haleem Adil Sheikh, the Leader of Opposition in Sindh Assembly has said that the lockdown imposed by the Sindh government was a grave conspiracy against the improving economy of the country that would create a lot of troubles for the people of Sindh and Pakistan. He maintained that PPP rulers had become a security risk for Pakistan and wanted to weaken the economy of the country by imposing the complete lockdown without seeking permission from NCOC officials.

Mr Sheikh, who is also central vice president of PTI, during the inauguration ceremony of the newly constructed bridge at the northern by-pass road in Gulshan-e-Maymar area of Karachi on Saturday, highly lauded the efforts of the officials of the National Highway Authority, who according to him, completed the construction within eight months. After the ceremony, Mr Sheikh spoke to the media persons and said that the lockdown of one week in a city like Karachi would affect the economic activities in the whole country for many months and said insane rulers, who imposed such decisions, had become a security risk for the country. The PTI leader said that corrupt PPP rulers, who had already failed to provide any relief to the people of the province, were now trying to snatch the morsels from the mouths of their people by imposing lockdowns.

He said that Murad Shah, who was not looking in his senses during a meeting on Friday, made a conspiracy against the economy of the country by imposing the lockdown in Sindh. He said that the city, which was contributing to 67 percent of revenue generation of the country, should not be allowed to be affected by such stupid decisions.

He said that PPP rulers were only interested in making money but were least bothered to make a concerted effort to tackle the situation under the directions of the National Command and Operation Centre. He asked Mr Shah to go to NCOC and to seek permission from authorities before making any decision to destroy the economy of Karachi and Pakistan. ” Nobody should be allowed to play with the economy of the country through senseless moves,” he commented.

He said that despite the fact the federal government was providing the vaccines to the Sindh government adding he alleged that provincial high-ups were not serious about vaccinating the people. He said that the Federal Government besides providing the vaccines had handed over the charge of the Expo Centre for the vaccination adding he alleged the provincial government had created the mess there and people instead of getting vaccinated were rather being getting infected due to poor arrangements. Mr Sheikh said that during his visit to Expo Centre in Karachi he witnessed the crowded situations, several hundred people in long queues were waiting for their turn to get themselves vaccinated. He said hardly any person was taking care of the SPOs and that was enough to expose the intentions of PPP rulers towards the health of people.

“Such decisions are against the country” he added and requested the high-ups of National Command and Operation Centre to deploy the troops of Pak Armed Forces and Rangers personnel to implement the smart lockdowns in the areas from where cases were being reported instead of the complete lockdowns. He observed that now only state institutions could only ensure the smart lockdown in the troubles and to ensure the proper vaccination against the deadly virus.

Mr Sheikh said that the Supreme Court had ruled that the provinces could not take unilateral decisions in this regard, but the Sindh government’s announcement about the imposition of a lockdown in the province was against such orders. The PTI leader said that under Article 151 of the Constitution, Pakistan is a single market with the port of Karachi acting as the jugular vein of its economy”. Any attempt that could affect the country’s economic lifeline should not be allowed adding he said that the Sindh government took the unilateral decision, which would prove very dangerous for the people, who were already facing financial hardships. He said that the PTI leadership strongly condemned such a decision, which was aimed at stifling economic activities. He said that Murad Ali Shah without seeking permission from the concerned authorities had imposed the complete lockdown to weaken the economy of the country and to mint money from traders through the police officials.

Mr Sheikh questioned who would run the factories when the buses in the city were not being allowed to ply, adding he said that police officials were minting money from the poor people.

Mr Shaikh maintained that the option of imposing a complete lockdown was not available to any provincial government but Murad Ali Shah again made a very unwise decision and provided an opportunity to police officials to mint money from traders, businesses, and vendors. The policy about the Covid pandemic was formulated by the federation and the National Command and Operation Centre and the provinces were bound to implement it, he said. Mr Sheikh said the Imran Khan-led PTI government had fought hard against the virus and had so far managed to save many lives while maintaining a stable economy. Mr Sheikh said that the PTI leadership would stand with traders if they decided to come on the roads to register the illogical move by the Sindh government.

Prime Minister Imran Khan and other high-ups of the Federal government, he said, were of the opinion that a complete lockdown would severely affect the working class, particularly the daily wage earners. He said that Pakistan under the dynamic leadership controlled the worst situations during the peak of the pandemic and his sincere efforts were lauded by the heads of other countries.

Had the Sindh government implemented the SOPs effectively, the situation in Karachi and other parts of Sindh would not be so grim and worse today. Mr Sheikh said that those living in Bilawal House and in their palatial palaces did not know how the poor people were suffering during such lockdowns. He said that Murad Ali Shah a day before imposing the lockdown in Sindh attended a crowded event in his home district without feeling fear of getting infected by the virus adding he asked him to stop doing such dramas to dupe the people.

Mr Sheikh again lashed out at the corrupt PPP rulers of Sindh, for doing nothing for the people of the province. He said that people were dying of different other diseases and viral infections but the PPP rulers were not concerned about providing the vaccines and the required medicines in the hospitals of the province.

Mr Haleem said that the bridge he inaugurated was washed away by floodwaters last year due to heavy downpours but the officials of the authority reconstructed it adding he said that it would provide great relief to the commuters. He said that rehabilitation work on the 15 kilometers of the northern by-pass was also underway. The PTI leader said that the Federal Government was going to launch the mega projects after the PPP government did nothing for the province.