Goods transporters defer nationwide strike for 40 days

Goods transporters have announced a 40-day postponement of their nationwide strike following talks with government representatives in Karachi.

The negotiations were held at the Governor House in Karachi. Sindh Governor Nihal Hashmi, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab, Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan and All Pakistan Goods Transporters Association President Malik Shahzad attended the meeting.

Speaking at a press conference after the talks, Malik Shahzad said transporters had decided to postpone the strike after receiving assurances from the government.

He said the transporters had been on a nationwide strike for the past nine days. According to him, the Sindh government assured them that the parking issue would be addressed.

Shahzad said the government had also sought 15 days to review the mechanism for determining petroleum prices. The issue of whether fuel prices should be revised every 15 days or once a month would be examined, he added.

He said Federal Minister Abdul Aleem Khan had assured the transporters that a committee would be formed to review toll taxes and consider reducing the charges.

The transporters were also assured that 10-wheeler vehicles would be allowed to carry an appropriate weight, Shahzad said.

He added that the federal and provincial governments had already resolved some of their concerns. Other issues require decisions at the cabinet level, he said.

Shahzad said meetings of the relevant committees would continue. He expressed hope that the government would fulfil its commitments.

He clarified that the transporters were not ending their strike permanently. Instead, they were postponing it for 40 days.

He warned that the transporters could resume protests if the government failed to implement the assurances given during the negotiations.

Federal Minister for Communications Abdul Aleem Khan said the government had addressed the transporters’ issues that could be resolved immediately.

He said some demands required formal procedures, which the government would complete. Several committees had been formed to work on the remaining issues, he added.

Aleem Khan also criticised the condition of the Karachi-Hyderabad road. He said the existing road could not properly be described as a motorway.

He announced that work on a new motorway from Sukkur to Hyderabad and onward to Karachi would begin this year.

The minister said the government wanted to avoid decisions that could create unnecessary disputes.

Sindh Governor Nihal Hashmi said the regional situation was currently unusual and had significant economic implications.

He said the economic effects of conflicts were being felt not only in Pakistan but across the world. He added that the prime minister and the field marshal were making efforts to ensure that the impact on the public remained manageable.

Hashmi said the government and transporters had listened to each other during the negotiations. Both sides, he added, agreed that they were prepared to make sacrifices for the country.

Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said the authorities had spent the entire day trying to resolve the issues raised by transporters.

He said the Sindh government would take action on matters falling under its jurisdiction. Wahab stressed that the authorities wanted to resolve disputes through dialogue rather than confrontation.