Led by local leaders of the QWP, JUI-F, ANP and PML-N, the protesters chanted slogans against PESCO officials. PHOTO: EXPRESS
SHABQADAR:
As soon as the sun rose on Monday morning, protesters took to the streets after announcements on loud speakers by community leaders. They blocked the main Peshawar-Mohmand route and all other link roads from 6am till afternoon.
Enraged by power outages, people burnt tyres on the main Shabqadar Bazaar road and blocked it for several hours.
Led by local leaders of the Qaumi Watan Party, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl, Awami National Party and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, the protesters chanted slogans against officials of the Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco).
They accused Pesco officials of stealing electricity from local feeders and sending it to the industrial feeders. Later, the protesters marched to the Pesco executive engineer’s (XEN) office on main Peshawar Road and staged a sit-in there from 8am to 11am.
Former councillor Khanzeb Khan said residents pay their bills on time and the Haleemzai and Fatima Khel feeders are free from illegal connections but the XEN and his staff shut down the local feeders and divert power to marble industries instead.
Locals have been suffering from 20 hours of load-shedding for the past six months, said Khanzeb, adding that if Pesco cannot provide them with electricity they should remove the connections altogether as they pay bills for 24 hours of power yet get it for only four.
He said if load-shedding is not reduced, they will be unable to control the “youth’s rage”.
A leader of the ruling Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Anwar Taj Khan, also organised a rally which blocked several roads in protest against power outages. Anwar said excessive load-shedding has caused an acute water shortage as the motors used to pump water are seldom operational.
Later, the assistant commissioner of Shabqadar, Javed Khan, met protesters and assured them of solving their problems in two days. He said they are together in their suffering from power outages and assured that he would discuss the issue with Pesco officials.
When contacted, Pesco officials refused to give a proper explanation and said the feeders have been closed as they face line losses and not because power has been diverted to the industries.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 15th, 2014.
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