Karachi: Jamaat-e-islami (JI) Karachi Ameer Monem Zafar Khan while addressing a public press conference regarding Lyari's worsening conditions, administrative incompetence, corruption, lack of basic civic facilities, and the Lyari Transformation Project, said that the people of Lyari were once again being deceived through false promises and so-called development packages.
Monem Zafar Khan said that the Pakistan Peoples Party's worst administrative failure, corruption, and lack of basic services had pushed the entire Lyari area into a swamp of problems. He termed Sindh Local Government Minister Nasir Hussain Shah's announced Lyari Transformation Project as nothing more than an attempt to mislead the public.
He said the package, worth more than Rs25 billion, includes claims of road construction, sewerage, water supply, parks, and green belts, but similar announcements made in the past had remained confined to paper only.
Monem Zafar said that over the last 15 to 18 years, the PPP government had repeatedly announced multi-billion-rupee packages in the name of development for Lyari and Karachi, including projects worth Rs35 billion, Rs102 billion, and Rs1,100 billion, but none had produced any practical results.
He further said that the Karachi Transformation Plan announced in 2020 was supposed to be completed by 2021, yet 2026 has arrived and the city's condition has only deteriorated further.
He questioned the authorities, asking what happened to the Rs3 billion package announced for Lyari in 2022, and where the Rs1.45 billion allocated to Sui Southern Gas Company and other funds provided to union councils had been spent.
He said Lyari's 13 union councils had received millions of rupees over the past two years, but no visible work could be seen on the ground.
Monem Zafar announced that through JI's 'Haq Do Lyari Ko' campaign, all issues faced by Lyari would be highlighted, and the provincial government would be held accountable at every level. He added that, as in the past, JI would continue to be the voice of Lyari's people and would keep fighting for their rights on every forum.
He further said that Lyari's roads were badly damaged, the sewerage system had collapsed, gutters were overflowing at multiple locations, and there was an acute shortage of clean drinking water.
Referring to the condition of major roads, he said public movement had become extremely difficult.
He said Lyari, once known for football, boxing, and youth talent, was now suffering from deprivation and neglect. Educational, sports, and social activities had nearly come to an end, while residents were deprived even of basic facilities.
He added that despite the Sindh Solid Waste Management Board's Rs43 billion budget, Karachi in general and Lyari in particular had turned into heaps of garbage.
He alleged that corruption was rampant under the cover of contracts and tenders, and that looting was continuing in the name of Chinese companies.
Monem Zafar said that despite remaining in power for decades, the PPP had failed to provide basic facilities to the people of Lyari, and was now once again making claims after returning to power through what he called a 'fake mandate.'
Later, Monem Zafar also visited different parts of Lyari. On the occasion, JI District South Ameer Sufyan Dilawar, former MPAs Syed Abdul Rasheed and Haji Babu Ghulam Hussain Baloch, along with JI Karachi Spokesperson Zahid Askari and others accompanied Monem Zafar.