Opposition blasts mayor as KMC City Council lauds him through passing resolutions

• JI, PTI members chant slogans against mayor.
• 21 resolutions approved by a majority vote.
• Journalists manhandled in the media gallery.

Karachi Deputy Mayor Salman Abdullah Murad presided over a general session of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) City Council at the Council Hall of the KMC headquarters here on Thursday, The News reported.

Raising slogans against Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) members of the City Council staged demonstration during the council session. 

Leaders of the political parties alleged Wahab of allocating funds only to his cherry-picked union bodies. In the meantime, journalists were manhandled in the media gallery.

21 resolutions were approved by a majority vote during the meeting. The first resolution, one of the main ones, commended Muhammad Waqar, Babar Magsi, Imam Bakhsh Brohi, and Karamullah Waqasi on winning the by-elections for various union committees in various Town Municipal Corporations (TMCs). Additionally, it congratulated Waqasi on being nominated as the house leader.

All employees in grades one through four who had worked for the KMC for more than 15 years were promoted through the second resolution.

Another resolution praised the mayor for successfully executing various development projects in the metropolis. These initiatives included the repair and resurfacing of various roads and highways at a cost of Rs2 billion, the renovation and beautification of bridges, flyovers and underpasses, restoration of streetlights, development and beautification of parks, establishment of Karachi Metropolitan University, reforms in the Karachi Water & Sewerage Corporation leading to a record increase in monthly revenue, replacement of dilapidated water and sewerage lines, expedited execution of water supply projects, rehabilitation of the sewage treatment plant and others.

A resolution congratulated Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his spokesperson Wahab for their crucial role in the 26th Constitutional Amendment’s passage with a two-thirds majority in the National Assembly and Senate.

The KMC Council also passed a resolution commending the mayor for installing solar panels on the roof of the KMC central building to harness solar energy, recognising this initiative as exemplary.

Another resolution urged the Sindh government and KMC’s medical and health services department to conduct a comprehensive operation against quacks and unlicensed doctors and their clinics in Karachi.

Other resolutions included the approval of the KMC’s annual budget for 2023-24, recommendations for the allotment and transfer of land for Karachi Metropolitan University, direct publication of KMC advertisements in newspapers through the department of information, printing and media management, introduction of a new appointment procedure and time scale for imam and muezzin posts in the KMC, and imposition of charges for issuing house job certificates and experience certificates for medical professionals at Abbasi Shaheed Hospital.

Additional resolutions involved upgrading the KMC accountant post from BPS-11 to BPS-16, granting the Manghopir Hospital the status of a major hospital, approving the construction of a 100-bed hospital on government land in Moromir Bahar (formerly SITE Town) for the middle class, and taking steps to restore traffic flow at Banaras Chowrangi.

The KMC City Council also demanded that the federal government prioritise use of Sindh’s natural gas to benefit the province's residents. It offered condolences to the families of those killed in terrorist incidents in District Kurram, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Other resolutions called for removing encroachments from green belts along Hub River Road, planting new trees, increasing the OZT funds for UCs from Rs0.5 million to Rs1.2 million a month, and completing a pilot project at the Mauripur Sewage Treatment Plant to recycle sewage water for industrial and construction use.

Lastly, the KMC council congratulated the mayor on restoring the Jamila Pumping Station in Karachi’s Old City Area and implementing protective measures to preserve the city's rich cultural heritage.

The Opposition Leader of the City Council, Advocate Saifuddin, speaking to the media after the session, said that mistreating journalists in the press gallery by thuggish elements of the PPP and preventing them from covering the proceedings was condemnable. He demanded that the mayor take notice of this behaviour and take action against the PPP workers involved in maltreating the media persons.

He alleged that the municipal officers were running a system of corruption. "This corrupt system is being patronised by Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab. Looting is rampant across Sindh," he said. "We discussed these issues before the session, but today unelected representatives were seated in the meeting."

He also condemned what he said insult of traders by the mayor. "Karachi has been in a poor state under the PPP government for the past 16 years," he said, adding that billions of rupees were being released from public money, but their utilisation was nowhere to be seen. He said that half of Karachi has been without water for ten days, and all the work done without the oversight of union committees was falling prey to corruption.

He said that contracts in Karachi were being awarded without tenders. He blamed the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) MPAs for being given Rs7 billion in funds, which were being used to silence the MQM.

"We will protest the mayor’s behaviour in the council and take this matter to the courts," he said. The deputy mayor later spoke with a group of journalists who were mistreated during the council session and assured them that their grievances would be addressed.