HYDERABAD: Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) lawmakers MNA Wasim Hussain and MPA Rashid Khan have severely criticised the Hyderabad Water and Sewerage Corporation (HW&SC) for failing to supply drinking water to millions of residents amid a severe heatwave ahead of Eidul Azha.

Addressing a press conference at the local press club, the lawmakers lambasted the Hyderabad mayor for failing to address the crisis, accusing him of relying on an incompetent HW&SC management, including its chief executive officer.

They alleged that the corporation’s poor performance was directly linked to systemic corruption within the Sindh government, which they claimed consistently appoints inept officers who embezzle public funds. They further alleged that these officials were skimming money from government departments to build offshore business empires.

The lawmakers noted that despite the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) being in power for 18 years, the HW&SC had failed to provide water to most parts of the city ahead of the upcoming festival. They claimed the corporation’s highly paid officers lacked basic knowledge of urban planning and had failed miserably. Holding everyone from the Hyderabad mayor and the Sindh chief minister to the PPP chairman directly responsible, the MQM-P leaders criticised their apparent indifference. They also pointed out a stark disparity in remuneration, alleging that HW&SC officials received lucrative salary packages while daily labourers were paid a mere Rs15,000, in open violation of minimum wage laws.

Mr Hussain called on Field Marshal Asim Munir to launch targeted campaigns against corruption and economic mismanagement following the completion of internal security operations. He remarked that individuals who started with nothing in 2008 had since become millionaires, urging the Field Marshal to rid the province of corruption to restore public service delivery. He added that the recent raid on the Deputy Commissioner’s office and the subsequent arrest of an under-training assistant Mukhtiarkar demonstrated how deeply corruption had plagued government departments.

Acknowledging that power load-shedding by the Hyderabad Electric Supply Company (Hesco) compounded the water crisis, Mr Hussain—who is a member of the National Assembly’s Standing Committee on Power—said he would meet the Hesco chief on Monday. Seeking to dispel the impression that he was soft on the federal entity because the MQM-P is a coalition partner in the federal government, the MNA promised a blunt discussion. He added that he would formally counter the PPP chairman’s recent criticism of the MQM-P on the floor of the National Assembly in the presence of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari.

Meanwhile, MPA Rashid Khan stated that the HW&SC management was incapable of running the utility, causing a continuous decline in performance. He noted that pumping machinery at various water reservoirs remained broken because the corporation lacked the capacity to repair them, adding that lagoons in Jamshoro had not been de-silted.

Mr Khan claimed that instead of upgrading existing filtration plants, new water projects were being designed by the municipal authorities to benefit specific housing schemes slated for construction in those areas. He further alleged that residents were being denied drinking water simply because they were not PPP voters.

Criticising Bilawal’s Friday speech against the MQM-P, the MPA defended his party’s track record, contrasting it with the PPP’s public-private partnership model, which he claimed burdened citizens. To illustrate his point, he noted that commuters are forced to pay a Rs200 toll simply to travel on Shahrah-i-Bhutto.

Turning to the law and order, Mr Khan referenced the recent police crackdown on narcotics dealers, demanding that the authorities disclose who had patronised the drug trade during its peak. He lamented that the government had ignored the issue while the children of ordinary citizens were dying of addiction, taking action only after the children of certain parliamentarians fell victim to the menace.

Published in Dawn, May 25th, 2026