Criticising the government for massive price hike and unemployment and its ill-advised agreement with the International Monetary Fund (IMF), leaders of a leftist party on Saturday stressed the need for taking drastic steps to change the current political system to ensure economic empowerment of the masses.

The Karachi chapter of the Pakistan Mazdoor Kisan Party (PMKP), a left-leaning political party, had organised a seminar, titled ‘Pakistan’s current political and economic situation’, at the Karachi Press Club’s Conference Hall. A large number of party leaders, activists and civil society leaders attended the programme.

PMKP Central President SM Altaf Advocate presided over the seminar. The other speakers included the PMKP Central Chairman Afzal Khamosh, Secretary General Taimur Rehman, and the Awami Workers Party’s central president Yousaf Masti Khan. The speakers urged the workers, farmers, and youth of the country to get involved in politics to ensure that basic necessities were provided to them.

Discussing left-wing politics in the current era and highlighting the miseries of the labourers, peasants and students, the speakers stressed the need for empowering masses in the real sense and take radical political action against corruption, nepotism and pro-IMF policies.

They said the labour class would never be given its basic rights and it would have to snatch them and for this, the labourers needed unity. The present political system in the country was an inconsistent combination of feudal system and capitalism and it had reached its climax and was about to fall, the speakers said. “All it needs is a strong push from those who had been exploited since independence,” said a speaker.

It was said that the current political system had caused several problems which could not be resolved without addressing the class question. The fifth edition of journalist Mujahid Barelvi’s book ‘Habib Jalib’ was also launched at the event.