"All over the country by
holding Protest
Rallies and Procession including Peshawar, Mardan, Attock, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Faisalabad,
Gujranwala, Multan, Bahawalpur, Rahim Yar Khan, Sukkur,
Hyderabad and Quetta. At
Lahore a large Rally of thousand of the
workers was held before Lahore Press Club
Square lead by veteran Trade Union Leader Mr. Khurshid Ahmad, General Secretary of the union.
The protesters gathered
at Bakhtiar Labour Hall, Lahore and they marched up Lahore Press Club
Square carrying banners in support of their demands and condemning feudalism
and crony capitalism which allow rich to be
richer and poor to be poorer and raising unemployment and poverty and rising
prices of the commodities including
Petrol and other items. The World Bank and IMF imposing privatization of the
National Public Utilities i.e.
Electricity, Oil & Gas, Civil Aviation, PIA, Railways, National Bank of
Pakistan etc. against public interest. The rally was addressed by Mr.
Khurshid Ahmad, General Secretary alongwith Mr. Abid Hussian Minto, Renown Jurist and Chairman Awami Workers Party,
Syed Zakir Ali Shah, Syed Sajid Kazmi, Rana Shakoor, Muzaffar Mateen, Ch. Maqsood, Rana Akram, Osama
Tariq, Syed Zulqarnain Shah and other representatives of the union. The
rally demanded to the Prime Minister of Pakistan to introduce far reaching
Economic and Social Reforms in the Federal Budget by checking high inflations
and abject poverty and aggravating unemployment and ignorance in the country and make country Self Reliant by adoption National Self Reliance Policy taxing the feudal lords and crony capitalists and
and raise the Wages and Old-age Pension of the workers at least 50% and not to Privatize
National Public Utilities including Electricity which is basic need of the
citizens and introduce
reforms and handed over its control either
WAPDA or PEPCO instead of making their owner to the Private
Members of the BODs without any investment of a pennyand raise its efficiency
and develop Better
Services Culture for the Electricity Consumers and
develop Hydel, Gas, Thermal and Coal-Fired Thermal Power Station in the
public sector in order to provide cheaper source of electricity and overcoming
load shedding since privatization of profitable
Distribution Companies on the behest of World Bank and IMF would give rise Inter-provincial
Dispute alike Water Dispute and demanded to check high
rate of of tragic accident of the line staff
every now and then. "
Osama Tariq - All Pakistan Wapda
Hydro Electric Workers Union
CBA Bukhtiar Labour Hall
28 Nisbet Road Lahore. 0333-4276811
