KCCI letter to Law Enforcement Agencies, showing concern over KPO terror attack

The Karachi Chamber of Commerce & Industry presents best wishes and compliments. With reference to the above-captioned subject, we, the business & industrial community of Karachi, would like to express deep concerns over the awful state of law-and-order situation and the deteriorating image of Karachi due to rising lawlessness which has badly tarnished the image of our beloved city particularly after the recent gruesome terrorists’ attack on Karachi Police Office (KPO) situated at the main Shahrah e Faisal at a time when the Law Enforcing Agencies were already on a high alert due to ongoing Pakistan Super League (PSL).

While expressing heartfelt sympathies and condolences with the families of the martyrs of KPO incident and praying for swift recovery of the injured, we would like to mention that this Chamber has been cautioning time and again about such threats but unfortunately no concrete steps were taken and the recent wave of lawlessness clearly indicates how fragile Karachi’s law and order has become.

The poor law-and-order situation has triggered extreme anxiety amongst the members of the business & industrial community who are dubious of whether to continue their businesses in this city or move to somewhere else.

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Hence, we would like to request for a Joint Meeting at this Chamber or any five-star hotel in red zone at the earliest possible time within this week to address business community’s concerns in presence of the media so that the entire world could know what measures were being adopted to deal with the situation, which would surely help in saving the image of Karachi from further deterioration.

The presence of honorable CM along with High-ups of Law Enforcing Agencies at the proposed joint meeting would also help in telling the world that the law-and-order situation was not as bad as it was being portrayed by the anti-state elements whose only intention is to damage Pakistan’s repute in the international arena.

Moreover, we would like to inform that the Karachi Chamber’s My Karachi Exhibition, which is being staged since 2004 to portray Karachi as a peaceful city, is set to be organized at the Expo Center on March 3rd, 4th & 5th, 2023 but keeping in view the current state of affairs, we need advice on how to safely organize this event.

KCCI is eager to hold this event at any cost on the said dates regardless of several security threats as this exhibition was initiated in 2004 when the law-and-order situation was not so good and a bomb blast also took place in Bohri Bazaar Saddar but the then Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz encouraged us to hold My Karachi Exhibition to portray the soft and positive image of Karachi which has always been staged in all types of circumstances including law & order threats.

This year, we are expecting immense participation of around 800,000 visitors including high profile lawmakers, bureaucrats, diplomats and foreign delegates etc. so we need your prudent advice on how to hold this major event in a safe and secure manner which, we would also like to seek, during the proposed joint meeting.

We shall be very grateful if a confirmation about your participation in the proposed joint meeting is sent to this Chamber at the earliest so that we could accordingly make arrangements to hold this important meeting to discuss the law-and-order situation and to seek your opinion on how to improve the image of Karachi, besides devising strategies on how to safely stage My Karachi Exhibition.