By Ashrafuddin Pirzada
LANDIKOTAL: Scores of polio supervisors and field workers from Jamrud and Landikotal staged a protest demonstration at Bacha Khan Chowk in Landikotal Bazaar on Tuesday, voicing strong opposition to the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government’s proposed wage policy and warning of continued boycott of the polio eradication campaign until their demands are met.
Carrying banners and placards, the protesters chanted slogans in favour of their demands. They slammed the recent decision by polio program authorities and the provincial government to shift workers from fixed monthly salaries to daily wages under the so-called Daily Duty Management (DDM)policy.
The protesters termed the move “an act of economic murder,” warning that it could lead to the unemployment of over 1,300 polio workers across the Khyber district.
Speaking on the occasion, protest leaders said that many of them have been serving in the anti-polio campaign for years under difficult and dangerous conditions.
“Instead of recognizing our services, the authorities are now stripping us of our job security. This is unjust and unacceptable,” one of the protesting workers said.
The demonstrators demanded that the health department immediately withdraw the DDM policy and reinstate the previous system of monthly fixed salaries. They also urged the authorities to settle their pending dues from the last six months and place all polio workers on proper contract terms with job security.
“We want confirmation of our posts, and we also demand that polio workers be entitled to martyr and injury compensation packages, just like other frontline government staff,” said another speaker.
The protesting workers announced a complete boycott of future polio duties until all their demands are fulfilled. They also threatened to block the Pak-Afghan Highway as a part of their protest strategy.
“We are holding consultations with our representatives and a final plan of action will be announced soon,” a polio supervisor said.
