RAWALPINDI: Pakistani celebrities, many of whom call the port city of Karachi home, have slammed the city’s authorities for mishandling the ongoing flood crisis.
Karachi was lashed by heavy rains that began on Thursday and continued through Friday afternoon, causing widespread flooding. Streets and homes were inundated as the city’s drainage systems are outdated. Nearly 50 people were killed and many remain missing.
Oscar-winning documentary filmmaker Sharmeen Obaid Chinoy on Sunday shared a scathing post on Instagram with a photo of cars floating in floodwater on a street in Karachi.
“For every challenge that is thrown our way, we the citizens, rally, we look after our own ... but now the time has come to hold those who run this city accountable,” she said, announcing that residents are filing a lawsuit against the city’s authorities.
Actor Adnan Siddiqui shared images of flooded streets and his anger, calling on Pakistanis to speak up and “wake up the concerned authorities.”
“I’m full of angst as I cross the roads in Karachi flooded and when I see people struggling to make ends meet in these rains,” Siddiqui wrote.
Top model Zara Peerzada expressed her frustration that an emergency has not been declared. “This has not been addressed as a real disaster so far. It is not just ‘flooding’ or ‘monsoon,’” she wrote, as in another post she also shared information on organizations that are helping the affected and called on her followers to donate.
Actor and television show host Faysal Quraishi began tweeting Saturday night directly at utility company K-Electric, as power supply remains cut in many parts of the city.
“Big shoutout for @KElectricPk its been 54 hrs now and no electricity,” he wrote to his 1.1 million followers, complaining over heft electricity bills the city’s residents have to pay for substandard services.
“Politicians on tv as always are playing the blame game, using their time to invest in themselves and as much limelight and point scoring they can do,” actor Ahsan Khan wrote on Friday as used the viral hashtag #KarachiSinksNoOneThinks.
On Friday night, actor Mansha Pasha referred to Karachi as an “orphaned city,” as she described the devastation.
Veteran actor Samina Peerzada echoed the sentiment of many: “My beautiful city Karachi destroyed by negligence.”
Celebrities, like actor Ali Safina, in their tweets repeatedly used the word “incompetent” for both past and present authorities.
“The rain in Karachi is directly proportional to the level of incompetence,” she wrote on Thursday when the worst flooding was reported.
Actor Osman Khalid Butt on Thursday complained about “inadequate” drainage systems in the city. A day later, he shared a video showing his flooded home. “The wishes of the heart are drowned in incompetence.”
