KARACHI, July 17: The Pakistan Banking Association has expressed concern over the forced closure of MCB branches by some elements and has called upon the government to provide security to banks against such people.

In a statement issued here on Thursday, PBA chairman Mohammad Aftab Manzoor said that the forced closure of MCB branches in the city by a ‘group of miscreants’ was alarming for the banking community.

While the world’s financial sector is going through a meltdown, local banks have so far fared the bad weather quite well. However, such incidents adversely affect the business environment.

At this time, the statement said, the country needed to brace itself to meet the economic challenges, rather than be burdened by illegal activities. The banking sector is committed to supporting the government’s efforts for revival of the economy. In this situation, the government should not let the already difficult environment be further spoiled.

According to the statement, on July 3, 2008, a group of political workers backed by an employee gathered in front of the MCB Tower and ‘indulged in vandalism’. “They threatened the management to accept their illegal demands. Again on July 14, the same people used force to shut down MCB branches in Karachi and damaged its property. The customers of the bank could not be serviced on July 14, which resulted in huge losses to them and to the bank.”

The PBA, the statement said, appealed to the government to curb interference by outsiders in banks’ affairs. Over the past few years, the banking sector contributed significantly to economy in terms of employment and financial systems.

“Banks have generated large inflows of foreign investment through GDRs and more recently through the acquisition of shares. Incidents like these would result in distrust and loss of confidence in the Pakistani financial market by foreign investors.”