Day 8: More oil spills

The foriegn experts are not happy with the cleaning operation. The local govt. has been doing it’s best to deny anything and everything they can deny. Soon, they won’t even acknowledge that there is an oil spill in progress.

• Mr Ahmed Ali, federal minister of communications: “the shore of Karachi is so polluted that it is devoid of any marine life”
• Cowasjee has a good article about the lawsuit.

The main problem arising from this criminal neglect is the playing down and not owning responsibility for this lapse by the authorities concerned. The reluctance of the KPT and the ministry of communications to share information with the citizens of Karachi is to be abhorred. It has been three weeks and it is about time the powers that be spilled the can of beans to the public, that can save them from further embarrassments.

Statements from the KPT secretariat that “all is well and things are under control” and “the worst is over and there is going to be no more oil spill”, or, worse, the KPT chairman’s remarks “that by the time the situation turns critical” and all such utterances point to the sheer callousness of the officials. Mr chairman, the situation was critical on July 27, when an incompetent pilot lost his bearings and ended up in shallow waters in front of “Thandi Sarak” on the breakwater mouth. The direction of the vessel leaves much to be desired.
>> KPT’s complacent attitude