More than 150 textile mills have shut down in Faisalabad, says Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman

(Digital Itla)

Ameer of Jamaat-e-Islami, , says the public is suffering from the agony of unemployment and millions of workers are jobless. He stated that Pakistan is not lacking in resources, but a privileged elite class is looting the country. He announced that a major movement would be launched after Eid to change the oppressive system.

Addressing participants of a membership drive camp in , Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman said Pakistan is rich in resources and minerals, but the mafia sitting in power is consuming the country’s wealth. He claimed that for the past 32 years, the IPPs mafia has been exploiting the public, while the nation is even paying for power plants that remain shut down.

He further said that in Punjab, wheat prices have been fixed at only Rs 3,500, crushing farmers financially. According to him, companies operating under government patronage purchase cheap wheat and later sell it at higher prices, which he described as the height of anti-farmer policies.

He also stated that more than 10 million children in Punjab are out of school, while the government, instead of improving educational standards, is outsourcing schools. He alleged that Chief Minister is focusing only on publicity campaigns funded by public money, while the education and healthcare systems have been destroyed.

Criticizing fuel prices, Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman questioned why petrol prices in Pakistan have reached Rs 415 per litre when prices are lower in India and other countries. He said that Rs 120 levy and an additional Rs 35 tax are being charged on every litre of petrol, with the heaviest burden falling on 25 million motorcycle riders.

He appealed to the business community to support his movement, saying that hundreds of mills have closed down and millions of people have become unemployed. He emphasized that the need of the hour is not to change faces but to change the system, and announced that a full-scale movement would be launched after Eid.