RECORDER REPORT

KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Karachi Chief Monem Zafar said on Saturday that the megacity was not drowned by rain but by the corruption and mismanagement of government.

Addressing a press conference at Idara Noor-e-Haq, he demanded a Rs500billion package for Karachi’s development and Rs2 billion for each town, along with compensation for citizens who suffered losses during the recent spell of rain.

He said that the PPP’s ‘feudal mindset’ was the real cause of Karachi’s problems, accusing the party of controlling major institutions such as the Water Board, Solid Waste Management Board, Sindh Building Control Authority, KDA and MDA. He added that out of the megacity’s 20,000 tons of daily garbage, much ended up in drains instead of being disposed of properly.

Zafar clarified that JI’s nine towns received around Rs907 million monthly under Octroi Zila Tax, of which 78 percent went to salaries, with the remaining amount spent on fuel, medical needs, pensions, and other obligations. In some cases, including Gulshan Town, expenses even exceeded the allocation.

He criticized the manner in which Murtaza Wahab was installed as mayor, alleging that lawful votes were suppressed. He also held the Sindh Governor responsible for indulging in extravagance while the megacity’s infrastructure was collapsing.

Zafar said recent rains exposed Karachi’s civic failure, with citizens stuck for hours on flooded roads, underpasses submerged, and lives lost due to electric shocks. He said residents were also facing up to 18 hours of power outages, labelling K-Electric as “Killer Electric.”

He noted that while political parties united when it came to increasing their own salaries, they remained indifferent to Karachi’s rightful share of funds. He criticized incomplete projects such as the Red Line Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) and Karimabad underpass, and highlighted repeated collapse of the Nathakhan Bridge and inundating of Jahangir Road after rainfall.