-Pay raise seeking Govt employees agree to negotiate with govt after day-long fierce clashes with Police
-Bilawal, Maryam Nawaz back protesters
By Ajmal Khan Yousafzai
ISLAMABAD: Capital City Islamabad’s most protected Red zone got turned into War Zone after Police personnel, while launching a crackdown, fired tear gas shells at the government employees protesting against not raising salaries here on Wednesday.
The security officers have arrested seven leaders of the protesters outside the secretariat and conducting raids to detain other members. The local administration has also blocked the roads in Federal Capital by placing containers.
The reaction came after government employees announced to hold sit-in at D-Chowk and clashed with the security personnel. It is to be mentioned here that Capital Development Authority (CDA) Labour Union’s General Secretary Amanullah and Chairman Izhar Abbasi were taken into custody yesterday.
While responding to the protest, Federal Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid has said that the employees want forty percent raise in their basic salaries. We are in contact with the protesters and trying to resolve the matter, he said.
Meanwhile, a three-member government’s committee headed by Defence Minister Pervaiz Khattak has said that all the matters with the federal employees will be sorted out amicably and with mutual understanding.
Addressing a news conference in Islamabad on Wednesday along with other members of the committee including Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid and Minister of State for Parliamentary affairs Ali Muhammad Khan, the Defence Minister said we were holding talks with the employees and agreed on a number of steps including the upgradation.
He said the government was ready to extend a relief to the employees in the form of a special allowance till the presentation of the next budget. He said the recommendations of the pay and pension commission would be incorporated in the next budget.
He said it was earlier agreed that the salaries will be enhanced of the employees from 1 to 16 grades but yesterday the employees demanded the increase for all the employees.
The Minister said we are ready to again hold talks with them but clarified that any relief will be given keeping in view the current economic situation of the country.
Minister of State for Parliamentary Affairs Ali Muhammad Khan said resolution of the issues of the people is responsibility of the state and the government is committed to this end. Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid said we want to move ahead with laborers and resolution of their issue is our foremost priority.
Meanwhile, PPP chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and PML-N vice president Maryam Nawaz on Wednesday backed the government employees protest in Islamabad, slamming the government for inflation and price hikes in the country.
In a statement, Bilawal blamed PM Imran Khan’s “henchmen and stooges” for bringing about the worst-ever inflation in the country. “PPP Chairman said that the unbearable rocketing of the prices of commodities and utility items have multiplied the sufferings of the people.
“Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the selected government has failed to control inflation because its own people are involved in illegal profiteering,” read the PPP chairperson’s statement.Bilawal said that this is the first time that a government is “patronising unprecedented inflation” in the country. He said that prices of elecricity, gas and petroleum have gone through the roof.He made it clear that the country can get rid of the cruel inflation and price-hike only “through the ouster of incompetent, ineligible and illegitimate selected government of Imran Khan”.
On the other hand, Maryam Nawaz took to Twitter to criticise the government, calling for it to stop the “merciless torture” on the government employees.She said that the protesters were only asking for their rights.”For God’s sake, stop this merciless torture,” she tweeted. “Do not make the innocent government employees suffer from tear gas, shelling and baton-charging. They are not enemies but poor Pakistanis who are asking for their rights,” she added.
Islamabad Police on Wednesday fired tear gas at protesting government employees when they were heading towards the Parliament House located on the Constitution Avenue.
The protesters have reached the “D chowk” while the Islamabad authorities have blocked the way towards the Parliament with containers. According to sources, demonstrators have started bypassing the containers because of which the police once again resorted to tear gas shelling to disperse them.
Because of the tear gas, some police and Rangers personnel also had to retract for a while.
The protestors have demanded that the containers be removed or else they will remove it themselves.
The federal government employees are demanding a raise in their salaries and had gathered yesterday after their leader Rehman Bajwa and nine others were arrested overnight.
The government employees are protesting against the income disparities between various federal government employees. They have been demanding a 40% increase in their salaries.
The protesters have received support from government employees over grade 17, who have also demanded an increase in their salaries.
The All Pakistan Clerks Association and government employees of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Balochistan, Punjab and Sindh are also supporting the protest.
Meanwhile, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmad on Wednesday said the government was continuously engaged in talks with the federal government employees protesting here to resolve their salaries issues.
The government’s parliamentary committee had already held negotiations with All Government Employees Grand Alliance and the committee had agreed to increase pay of 16 grade employees despite that holding protest was beyond perception, he said talking to a private news channel.
The minister said the protestors were now demanding to raise salaries of employees up to 22 scales which were impossible for the government as the country was already confronting financial crunch. 22 grade officials were fully supporting and inciting the employees for the protest and anarchy, he added.
He said the incumbent government was intended to increase salaries of the federal employees up to 16 grade.
He said due to 18th amendment, the federal government was not bound to increase salaries of employees of the provinces.
He said the police personnel had taken actions against violators of law during the protest.
