The industrialists of the provincial capital on Friday withdraw their call for observing a two-day shutter down strike against the growing incidents of kidnapping for ransom and load shedding of electricity and natural gas for the commercial consumers in the province.
The decision to withdraw the call was taken after the business community was given assurance by both Governor Owais Ahmad Ghani and Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti during separate meetings held in Governor's House and Frontier House.
"Both governor and chief minister NWFP have assured us that they will resolve our problems within a period of 15 days and now we have decided to wait that how the government reciprocate to our good gesture," told Nauman Wazir, president Industrialists Association Peshawar (IAP) when contacted by Business Recorder. During the meeting of the delegation of business community, both senior ministers Bashir Ahmad Bilour and Rahimdad Khan were also present.
The traders and industrialists of NWFP have launched a protest movement against deteriorating law and order, electricity, gas load shedding and particularly the growing incidents of the kidnapping for ransom. The provincial legislature two days backed concluded a five-day long debate on the law and order situation in the province. During the debate, a member while expressing concern over the increase in the incidents of the kidnapping for ransom and in utter disappointment called upon the government to declare the menace as industry in the province.
The law and order situation since last few months had deteriorated to the lowest ebb and incidents of the kidnapping for ransom are reported on daily basis. During last six months not only the local industrialists and traders rather foreign diplomats and local journalists were also kidnapped.
The Peshawar-based consul-general and Afghan ambassador designate to Pakistan, Abdul Khalik Farahi and commercial attaché in the office of Consul-General of the Islamic Republic of Iran, Heshmat Attarzadeh were kidnapped in the months of September and November 2008, which are still untraced. The schedule of the protest movement launched by the business community was announced by president of Sarhad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (SCCI), Sharafat Ali Mubarak. According to the schedule, the business community was to observe a two-day shutter down in the Industrial Estate Hayatabad, by including protest of shopkeeper community, later on.
During the meeting, Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti has promised deployment of 300 additional police personnel in the provincial capital for bringing improvement in surveillance over the activities of the anti-social elements. Business community has also demanded handing over of the command of Frontier Constabulary (FC) in the province.
Regarding the problem of gas load shedding in the industrial sector, Nauman Wazir said that the provincial government has assured the resolution of the problem by January 30, 2009 while the problem of the massive unscheduled power load shedding would be raised with Wapda through federal government.
The delegation of the business community also called for the preparation of special economic revival plan for the province by the provincial government and constitution of a committee in this regard. The provincial government, he said has promised that the scheme prepared in this regard would be implemented by the provincial government while Investment Council would be reactivated under the chairmanship of the Chief Minister Ameer Haider Hoti.