LAHORE, June 1: Resorting to a novel mode of protest against excessive loadshedding in the province, Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif set up his tent office at Minar-i-Pakistan.

He also held various departmental meetings at the tent office set up “to gain first-hand knowledge about the problems people are facing due to loadshedding.”

Talking to the media, Shahbaz said “Ali Baba and 40 thieves” (a reference to President Asif Zardari and his cronies) had destroyed national economy and their poor policies and plunder had pushed the country into darkness.

He said the energy crisis was resulting in closure of industries and the people were finding it difficult to make both ends meet. He said water is essential for survival but due to protracted loadshedding people are deprived of even this basic necessity.

He said time had come to get rid of inefficient and corrupt rulers to solve the national problems.

The chief minister said he had set up the tent office to gain first-hand knowledge of the problems of the people and it’s a co-incidence that journalists from Sindh called on him at this place.

He said it’s time to make a pledge at Minar-i-Pakistan that the people of four provinces as well as of Azad Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan would rid the country of “Ali Baba and 40 thieves”.

He said inefficient rulers of Islamabad forced the people to starvation therefore the days of such rulers were numbered. He said circular debt had reached Rs400 billion.

He said: “Zardari and the convicted prime minister should listen that as long as injustice to Punjab is continued regarding loadshedding, its 700 megawatts of power is not returned and the problems of the people are not resolved, his tent office at Minar-i-Pakistan will stay.”

He said it had been promised in energy conferences that there would be uniform loadshedding in the country but the word had not been honoured.

The chief minister said he was with the people protesting against loadshedding but it is his request to them not to damage public properties as these will have to be eventually utilised.