LARKANA: The All-Pakistan Wapda Hydro Electric Workers Union’s central president, Abdul Latif Nizamani, has demanded the federal government immediately shut down all independent power producers (IPPs) which suck in Rs2,500 billion in the shape of dollars without generating a single unit of electricity.

Mr Nizamani said during a press talk here on Friday that the unfortunate decisions that allowed 104 IPPs owned by the country’s elites to siphon off Rs2,500 billion for doing nothing should immediately be reviewed to extend relief to people.

He said the obtaining situation direly demanded an end to political interference in power utilities and recruitment of required staff to smoothly run the companies as the skilled workers were backbone of any entity.

He said that political parties were using institutions as their leverage tools. The practice should be discontinued forthwith and the issue of acute shortage of staff in power utilities should be addressed on a permanent basis, he said.

He said that the union (CBA)’s work council took up a host of issues, including release of the Prime Minister’s Assistance Package to widows of the deceased workers, in a meeting with the Sukkur Electric Power Company’s (Sepco) chief Saeed Dawich.

The CBA leaders urged the Sepco management to send back 40 employees, who had been transferred on charges of ‘misconduct’, to their home districts, and discussed the chronic issue of a 40 per cent staff shortage and clearance of medical bills.

During his visit of Larkana, Sukkur, Ghotki, Shikarpur and Dadu districts, Mr Nizamani participated in ongoing election process of the union and urged workers to play their role in containing power theft, which he described as a national loss.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2024