While Punjab Chief Minister has denied blocking traffic on city roads during transit, the same cannot be said about his subordinates. Shahbaz Sharif on Sunday directed the chief traffic officer not to keep traffic blocked for long hours in the name of security route for the CM. He also came out of his car on Allama Iqbal Road and handled the traffic for sometime. While the chief minister was acting as a traffic police officer, other government officials continue to abuse their position in clear defiance of his orders and continued to block traffic during transit.
An on-duty traffic warden, seeking anonymity, told
Pakistan Today that the maximum number of blockades is witnessed on The Mall and the Canal but often the route and the movements mostly depends on the official concerned. “The Mall becomes a sight of traffic mess during the office hours because top government officials move to and from the Civil Secretariat and other offices. A warden cannot stop a senior police officer moving with a squad of gunmen or any other top bureaucrat who do not usually follow traffic signals or lane rules,” he added. The VIP movement on the roads is meant only for top government offices including the president, the prime minister and chief ministers. While the Punjab CM denying traffic protocol for himself is a positive step, the downward hierarchy has put it on the backburner.
Every day the commuters witness the “special status” on the roads enjoyed by the top government officials mostly guarded by armed policemen which naturally results into traffic mes, especially in rush hours. “I work in a bank and have to commute daily on The Mall and witness how the vehicles with green number plates followed by police vans violate lane discipline and traffic signals with ease. The police guards even force others from moving close to their vehicle while committing violations,” Ahsan Manzoor, a banker told Pakistan Today.
Chief Traffic Officer (CTO) Captain Sohail said there are two time brackets, the office timing in the morning and evening, for rush hours during which the traffic signals are switched off. “We don’t observe protocol for any official at all whatsoever be it the IG or the chief secretary. The itinerary is only communicated through the wireless if a high official is commuting. If the CM has denied it for himself, we won’t observe it for anyone else,” he added.
CM shuns protocol but his subordinates keep roads blocked for hours!
