SWABI: Swabi Action Committee (SAC), a grouping of leaders of political parties, civil society activists and elders established a year ago to fight for people’s rights, has demanded free electricity for the people of the district.

The demand was made during a meeting held at the hujra of Masood Jabar, former provincial deputy general secretary of Qaumi Watan Party.

Salim Khan Advocate, former provincial general secretary of Awami National Party, Javid Inqilabi, divisional general secretary of Pakistan Peoples Party, Ghulam Haqqani, Razaar tehsil council chairman, Mohammad Rashid Advocate, former chairman of Public Safety Commission Maulana Khalil Mukhlis, former MNA Jehan Zeb Khan, and representatives of local government were in attendance.

The participants said the people of Swabi deserved free electricity as they had given their lands for the construction of Tarbela and Ghazi-Barotha dams.

Calls for spending tobacco tax on welfare of locals

They said the government should spend net hydel profit and taxes collected from tobacco on the welfare of Swabi people. They pointed out that 60 per cent of tobacco was produced in Swabi.

The action committee members also demanded end to excessive electric loadshedding and provision of subsidised power to industrialists of Gadoon Amazai Industrial Estate.

They also asked the district administration to ensure traders observed the officially-issued price list, and bring an end to killing incidents and menace of ice drug.

Members of the committee said they had run a full-fledged campaign from village-to-village for a year to educate people of the district they should not pay taxes and fuel costs incorporated in the electricity bills because Tarbela Dam was built on their lands, which produced 4,888MW of power.

On the occasion, Salim Khan Advocate, who heads the committee, said they strived for progress and prosperity of the people of Swabi.

Masood Jabar said continued killing incidents in the district had vitiated the law and order situation.

Javid Inqilabi said: “We struggle for rights of the people because despite a huge contribution to national exchequer, they are kept deprived of required facilities, which has developed a sense of deprivation among them.”

SHOT DEAD: A retired army soldier was killed when unidentified persons opened fire at him in Shahmansoor village near the Khanqah bus stop.

Officials at the Zaida police station told Dawn that that he was on way to meet his friends when unknown assailants opened fire at him, killing him on the spot.

The deceased was identified as Noor Islam, 55. The Zaida police station registered an FIR against unidentified persons and started investigation.

Published in Dawn, May 20th, 2024