LAHORE: The PTI government is fast heading towards suicide because of its anti-people policies, warns Jamaat-i-Islami Emir Senator Sirajul Haq.

He was speaking at the oath-taking ceremony of the newly-elected president of the National Labour Federation (NLF) at Mansoora here on Saturday. He administered oath to Shamsuddin Swati. The NLF represents 325 labour unions all over the country.

Mr Haq said the idea of midterm elections came from Prime Minister Imran Khan and not from the opposition and it implied that the rulers did not have confidence in themselves. Referring to the plight of the workers, he said the labour laws of the country protected the interests of the capitalists and feudal lords instead of the workers.

He said the PTI had promised to create 10 million jobs in its five-year stint. By that calculation, around one million jobs should have been created by now but not a single job had been created. He said that by the year 2020, there would be another six per cent increase in unemployment.

The JI, Mr Haq said, was fighting for the rights of 60 million workers. “All development in the country is due to the hard work of the workers who are toiling day and night. Like previous governments, the present rulers have not given any attention to the problems of the workers,” he said.

The JI chief demanded an audit of the Labour Welfare Fund meant for the industrial workers. He said this fund amounting to billions of rupees, had been placed in the hands of a few labour officers who were enjoying it. He said more than 10 million children were forced to work under odd circumstances and some of them were subjected to sexual abuse.

The JI chief urged the government to frame effective laws to stop violence against children. Besides, he said, the households which were engaging child labour should be bound to make special arrangements for the education and training of these children.

He said the government’s privatisation policy was confusing and suggested that a labour representative should also be included in the Privatization Commission. He also demanded an amendment to the labour laws to grant the unregistered workers’ bodies the right of union making.

Replying to a question, the JI chief said the government was dependent on the support of the MQM and some other parties. He said the MQM had been part of every government and its sole demand was to be given an opportunity to do every lawful and unlawful activity.

Published in Dawn, January 20th, 2019