LAHORE: The Wasa Staff Welfare Union (CBA) will launch a protest drive from Monday (tomorrow) against the recent approval by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif to establish the Lahore Water and Sanitation Company (LWSC) and transferring of the agency’s system and infrastructure to it within three years.

The entire 30 union office-bearers have also pledged under oath that none of them will bow before those supporting the decision and would make efforts to stop the establishment of the LWSC.

The office-bearers and employees of Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa) consider the company as harmful to their service career as well as the agency.

“We resist the LWSC establishment whether through staging protests or stopping water supply, drainage or chocking the entire system,” Union President Rana Iqbal told Dawn on Saturday.

He said that in first phase, the Wasa employees would stage a big protest rally in front of the Lahore Press Club on Monday, followed by a series of rallies at all Wasa offices, including the head office in Gulberg, in coming days. If the government didn’t withdraw its decision, the protest would be extended by chocking the whole system, Iqbal warned.

“All office-bearers have committed under oath to continue the protest until withdrawal of the decision,” Mr Iqbal said, adding that there were various reports in the official circles over the issue.

He said the officials were being asked to resign from Wasa and join the new set-up but how it would be possible for over 6,000 regular staffers, having service of 20 years or so, to quit regular jobs and join the new company on a contract basis.

He said the new company would not have the union culture, which was legally allowed under the constitution as well as the labour rules.

“If there is no union in the company, its entire set up will be illegal under the law,” he said.

When asked about the views of the senior officials, such as Wasa managing director, deputy managing director or directors, Iqbal said the MD and DMD had apparently looked to be supporting the LWSC establishment.

But a majority of officials, including officers, were against such a set-up. There were also reports that no senior official from Wasa would be inducted in the company, he said.

The company would take over the whole Wasa infrastructure/system by starting it first from Johar Town, Tajpura and Shadbagh.

“But how the company will work when the protesting employees will choke the system in these areas,” he said, advising the government to leave the plan of LWSC and restructure Wasa with good intensions keeping in view welfare of the employees for the sake of improving the system.