QUETTA, Feb 12: Hundreds of Wapda workers staged a demonstration here on Wednesday against the proposed privatization of the Faisalabad Electric Supply Company and Jamshorro Power House.

The protestors, carrying placards and banners inscribed with slogans, marched through different roads and streets chanting slogans in favour of their demands. Later, they gathered in front of the Quetta Press Club and delivered speeches.

Speaking to protestors the Central Vice-President of the Pakistan Wapda Hydroelectric Central Labour Union, Mohammad Ramzan, said that Wapda workers were protesting throughout the country against the privatization of profitable power houses and power supply companies at the behest of the IMF and the World Bank.

He said with the privatization of Wapda the people of Balochistan would suffer as the prices of electricity would go up manifold. He said with the increasing electricity price the country's industry would also be affected badly and the country would face economic problems.

"Power shortage would pit provinces against each other as is the case on water distribution," Ramzan Achakzai said, adding that why those people were silent on the destruction of Wapda who had always threatened the government with blasting the Kalabagh Dam if it was every constructed.

He said Wapda was collecting 15 per cent general sales tax from its consumers on behalf of the Central Board of Revenue and contributing Rs40 billion to the national exchequers. He said if the government itself collected the GST directly, Wapda would have been able to provide electricity to its consumers on much reduced rates.

The leader of the union announced that Wapda workers would not allow the government to sell profitable power projects and would resist such attempts with full force.