Investigations has revealed that the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) has granted waiver to two political giants in Karachi and hired their workers as recovery officers (ROs) to collect dues of billions from defaulters.
The integrated business centers (IBCs) of the power giants are now controlled by units and ward offices. The consumers visit unit or ward offices to get their problems resolved by the power company.
The intensity of this issue could be gauged from the fact that the mobile of the power company could not move without permission of in-charge of the unit or ward office to repair an electric line or to fix other faults.
If anyone visits the KESC customer care center with some complaint, his problem will not be addressed until or unless the unit or ward in-charge of the area concerned allows the company’s mobile to move. Now the people go to unit or ward offices to get their problem resolved instead of visiting KESC complaint centers.
Like this, the power giant has hired workers of political parties as ROs in its IBCs in the metropolis for recovery of dues. The politically-backed ROs are playing important role in increasing recovery of dues from defaulters.
The power company has assigned the ROs with target of recovery, and their promotion and extension in the service contract has been made conditional with their performance. To achieve the target, the politically-backed ROs conduct average monthly billing and use ‘all type of methods’ to recover money from the defaulters.
“The power company has hired workers of two dominant political parties to ensure recovery of the outstanding amount from defaulters,” KESC Shareholders Association General Secretary Chaudhry Mazhar Ali said. The two political parties represent the Urdu-speaking and Pakhtuns residing in the metropolis, the general secretary said, adding the power company had deal with both the parties that central and zonal offices would be spared of load shedding.
Raising finger at the city’s dominant party, Chaudhry Mazhar Ali said the party favored the KESC and he raised his voice against the planned suspension of 650MW from National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) because the power company facilitated the bigwigs of party and their offices. Besides, the KESC had also hired such parties’ recommended blue-eyed men,” he accused.
“The Pakhtun party supports the KESC as there are many Pakhtun-dominated areas where the power company is conducting average billing,” the general secretary said, adding “the residents of these areas use kunda connections and no one can dare to visit these areas.” “Due to this, the power company has hired politically-backed Pakhtuns as ROs in such areas to ensure recovery,” the general secretary alleged.
“The KESC is a private company and it is not working under any political party,” KESC spokesman Adil said. “The company has come out of its transition stage successfully. If it is under the influence of any political party then it will not be possible for the power giant to survive in the mulch-ethnic metropolis,” he clarified.
“We have not given contract to any political party in the city for collection of dues from the defaulters,” the power company spokesman said. “The power company is facing many challenges in the metropolis. Sometimes our staff is kidnapped and held hostage for hours and sometimes our mobiles are set on fire by people but we do not blame any political party for this,” Adil maintained.
“The purpose behind establishing of IBCs was to disintegrate the powers from centre and to facilitate consumers at their door steps but it doesn’t mean that the power company had given control of the IBCs to the unit of ward in-charge of any political party of the area concerned,” he added.
When the spokesman was told about specific areas of the city and control of political parties on KESC IBCs and complaint centers with examples, he stayed mum.
A total disgrace! Is Karachi under Pakistani state control or a rag doll tugged about by Political kingpins?
The road to anarchy has been traveled very fast it seems
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