Pakistan Teheek-i-Insaf's (PTI) workers' sit-ins and protest in the city on Friday caused at least Rs 15 billion losses to the economy. Commenting on the hardships faced by the citizens in the wake of PTI workers' sit-ins and protest, traders strongly criticised Imran Khan, saying the PTI chief had brought his political 'war' to Karachi.
Business, commercial, seaport, social and academic activities came to a halt on Friday following PTI enforced its 'Plan C' of shutting down the city by blocking major roads and thoroughfares. "Imran Khan's act of giving a call for strike in Karachi is highly deplorable as he introduced new techniques to shutdown the city by blocking roads," All Karachi Tajir Ittehad (AKTI) Chairman Atiq Mir commented while talking to Business Recorder.
He said the PTI blocked all roads leading to the downtown and main business and commercial centres. "We did not close markets voluntarily. Traders and employees could not reach their markets as their movement was restricted in the wake of blockade of several roads," he said, adding that at least 2.5 million daily wage-earners were deprived of their livelihood in the strike."
He said traders had never volunteered to close down their shops during strikes of any party. "Whose interest Imran Khan is serving by observing strikes across the country?" he asked. "No Business activities could take place in such a strike," he added. The strike also forced public transporters to go off the road, causing immense difficulties to thousands of commuters, labourers, students and office-going people who seen stranded at one or other bus stop in different parts of the city.
He said the PTI leader should have spared Karachi while chalking out his 'Plan C' as his party had been protesting against the alleged rigging in last year's election in Punjab. "The PTI's `forced' strike inflicted losses amounting to around Rs 15-20 billion to the national economy," he said, adding that the markets will continue to remain shut for next two days on account of Chehlum of Imam Hussain (RA) and then on Sunday.
The PTI leader should not indulge in the political 'war' at the cost of national economy and social order as the traders will never appreciate his politics of agitation," he opined. Talking to Business Recorder, President of All Karachi Jewellers Group, Haji Haroon Chand said: "A group of people has warned all traders in the Old City area not to open their shops during PTI's strike or else they will be attacked with bomb."
Operations at the country's largest seaport was also baldly affected during the day-long strike, officials said, adding that the cargo supplies could not reach the port due to blockades of several roads. "A large number of port employees and workers could not make it due to non-availability of public transport," they added.
The PTI activists had laid a blockade at Native Jetty [Jinnah Bridge] to cut off the port from the rest of the country so as to scale down seaport operations. A fish trader, Fazal Akbar, said the strike failed to have its impact on trade activities at the harbour as main seafood supplies are made through sea. "Seafood supplies from Gwadar and other parts of Balochistan reached the fish harbour at its normal time ie 5:30am whereas the PTI's strike began after sunrise," he said.