Without electricity for a week due to an out-of-order transformer, the residents of Nothia protested against Peshawar Electricity Supply Company (PESCO) n Monday.
Police personnel checked the protest as Gul Abad, Nothia residents took to the street in the shape of a rally and walked to the Peshawar Press Club where they chanted slogans against the ‘apathetic and inefficient’ Pesco.
Holding placards and banners, with some of the protestors holding iron bars, protestors said their transformer had been out-of-order for a week but PESCO official had not responded to repair requests.
Protestor Ubaidullah said only a 200 Kv transformer was available for about 500 families in Gul Abad. He said they had been rectifying faults in the transformer themselves but it had not worked.
He said they had bribed certain Pesco officials to repair the transformer, however, despite bribes of over Rs 100,000 Pesco officials had remained apathetic.
Protestors demanded immediate action and threatened a road block if no progress was made.
Meanwhile Mera Sorizai residents took out an armed procession against outages and threatened to besiege the Peshawar Wapda House if power supply was not restored to them within the next 12 hours.
Coming from Mera Kichori, the Mera Sorizai residents said the PESCO Chief Executive should be held responsible for any untoward incident after four days without power for them.
The demonstrators gathered at Jamil Chowk, near Peshawar Ring Road, blocked the road and burnt tyres while chanting slogans against Wapda and Pesco for the collapse of their system.
The protestors were led by ANP local leader Sadiq Afridi, Awal Jan and Muhammad Ibrar. They said if PESCO failed to restore power, it would be hard for the government to keep the law and order situation in their control.
The protestors said that a local grand jirga had unanimously decided to besiege the Wapda house and take up arms if power was not restored within 12 hours. “Hold the PESCO chief executive responsible and the corrupt authorities of the Rahman Baba Pesco Sub-division,” they maintained.
