Tando Jam (Report by Munsif Ahmed Talpur) Like across Sindh, government employees in Tando Jam also staged a strong protest against the proposed changes in pension rules. A large number of employees from the Agricultural Research Center, Sindh Agriculture University Tando Jam, Rural Health Center, Pakistan Medical Alliance, and Livestock Department participated in the protest. The participants held rallies and gathered at Workshop Stop before marching towards the Tando Jam Press Club. During the protest, employees raised slogans and strongly criticized the government’s attitude. Addressing the rally, leaders including Dr. Fahad Nazir Khuhso, Malook Ojun, Sharif Kathio, Mumtaz Baloch, Ali Roshan Channo, Abdul Haye Bhutto, Khawar Memon, and Dr. Naveed Memon said that government employees had been protesting for weeks but the government had yet to pay any attention to their demands. They warned that if this behavior continued, government offices would remain shut as employees were being subjected to “economic murder.” The leaders pointed out that while the government had increased the salaries of a certain class by up to 300 percent, it was terming ordinary government employees as a burden on the economy and conspiring to snatch away their only support in old age—the pension—something they would never accept. According to the speakers, as the announced sit-in date approaches, the protest movement is gaining momentum and government employees are fighting for their survival. They made it clear that until the black law of pension cuts is withdrawn, there would be no negotiations with the government. The employee leaders announced that on October 6, government employees from across Sindh would gather in Karachi to besiege Bilawal House. They warned that if the government resorted to the use of force or adopted an aggressive stance, the entire responsibility would fall on the Chief Minister of Sindh.
