Karachi Citizen’s Forum holds discussion to improve safety and security of Karachi

Karachi: Karachi has been in the headlines for decades for the negative remarks regarding the international indices amongst the ten most unlivable cities of the world. KCF holds a press conference on the 21st of October titled "Why is the spiraling crime graph of Karachi not being brought under control?".

Karachi, the nerve center, the economic engine, the major artery of Pakistan is loaded with such fungal plaque and blockages, that the city today is relegated it to such a humiliating status

For the last few years, Karachi has also been known as the crime capital of the country, verified by headlines and the recent admission made by CM Sindh and Karachi’s Police Chiefs. Thus in September 2022 an announcement made by CM Sindh, emphasized that Karachi would be sanctioned 30bn for the Karachi Safe City Program, providing the needed technology and ten thousand CCTV cameras, and police force enhancement to become not just a safe but also a smart city.

At present, Karachi’s population is approximately 2 crores, and the area is 3780km. It has 2 thousand CCTV cameras (with blurred screens), it has a politicized police force, ill-recruited and ill-trained in ethics performance and accountability. The numerical strength is inadequate to provide safety and security to Karachi’s citizens. This has been the complaint of Karachi’s Police Chief in the past when hash-tagged as one of the most corrupt police forces in the world. This was because of the politicization of the police force, its low strength in numbers as well as equipment. This was unmerited condemnation.

Most countries that suffer low rank in global indices in livability and environment, pollution and safety are war-torn, authoritarian, politically unstable, and corrupt, with non-accountability and elite culture. Karachi should not fall under this category. It is neither war-torn, has a democratically elected government, is an Islamic republic, has a parliamentary budget allocation, yields high revenues to the provincial and federal government, as well as public institutions that run on tax payers money.

It is amazing that Karachi does not have an elected Mayor for years and municipal elections are deferred time and again.

At present, citizens feel unsafe travelling in cars, riding scooters, and have forgotten to walk on the garbage laden, broken pavements of the city, even in daylight. Though the media is filled with heinous crime headlines and reports, a large number of crimes are not reported as it leads to harassment or humiliation when filing FIRs

Karachi’s Mayoral election must be expedited and not postponed indefinitely. The cities of New York and London had improved drastically with regard to livability and crime index once due attention was given to the empowered Mayors. The police must be independent and depoliticized, strengthened and accountable. The economic well-being of Karachi must be secured.

For this reason, KCF invited their renowned experts to present their analysis and recommendation to improve Karachi’s wellbeing. Prof Dr Fateh Muhammad Burfat (Former Head of the Department of Criminology University of Karachi, Former Vice Chancellor, University of Sindh, Jamshoro) as well as Mr Zia Ahmed Awan, and Mr Mubashir Mir, were present and participated at the press conference.

The objective of KCF during this discussion was not to criticize and condemn our public institutions but to offer them methodologies, through which Karachi can regain its lost status as a world-class city and home in which we can live healthily, freely, and productively.