HYDERABAD: Activists of All Pakistan Wapda Hydro Electric Workers Union staged a demonstration in Power Wing Colony on Wednesday in protest against appointment of chief executive officers (CEO) and chief financial officers (CFO) of Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) from outside the organisation.

The union’s head Abdul Latif Nizamani, secretary Iqbal Khan and officers of Hesco said in their speeches before the protesters that the practice of appointing people to positions of CEO and CFO from outside instead of promoting senior officers of the power utility to the highest posts was unconstitutional.

They saw it as beginning of privatisation of the organisation and tantamount to destroying one of the national assets by degrees. The union and officers’ association would not allow outsourcing of metering and bills’ distribution when the utility faced shortage of meters and transformers, which were essential for providing electricity to consumers, they said.

They said that Hesco’s Board of Directors (BoD) was squandering away funds on personal affairs and privatisation. The government had assured the union that no organisation in power sector would be privatised but it had become clear now that the government was planning to sell off these organisations in addition to Pakistan Railways, PIA, Pakistan Steel Mills and others under pressure of World Bank and IMF.

They said that in the first phase, private CEOs and CFOs were appointed in three power distribution companies at hefty salary packages of Rs500,000 to Rs800,000 instead of using services of competent and senior officers of the respective organisations. The monetary package did not include other perks like payment of fuel, driver, vehicles, accommodation and rent, they added.

They said that it was great injustice with a public sector organisation as all the expenses were approved by BoD which failed to provide facilities to employees and officers.

They demanded the government appoint senior people from within the organisation to vacant positions for the improvement of service delivery and avoid outsourcing distribution of bills and metering.

They urged authorities concerned to make available bucket-mounted vehicles and personal protective equipment against coronavirus.

Published in Dawn, March 18th, 2021