Daily Bribes at Check Posts Exceed My Annual Fund, We Will Return to Streets if Oppression Continues: Maulana Hidayat ur Rehman

**Gwadar:** Ameer Jamaat-e-Islami Balochistan and MPA from Gwadar, Maulana Hidayat ur Rehman Baloch, has strongly criticized alleged extortion at security and law enforcement check posts, warning of renewed protests if the practice is not stopped.

Addressing participants during an ongoing sit-in by pickup drivers in Gwadar, Maulana Hidayat ur Rehman said that the daily amount of bribes collected at police, Coast Guard, Customs, and Excise check posts is higher than his entire annual development fund as an elected member of the provincial assembly. He announced that he would soon publish a detailed report exposing the scale of bribery being carried out at these check posts.

He said that workers and pickup drivers in Gwadar are facing severe humiliation on a daily basis and should be facilitated rather than harassed at every check post. He stressed that the people of Gwadar deserve respect and relief, not oppression and injustice.

Maulana Hidayat ur Rehman stated that he has raised these issues repeatedly on the floor of the assembly and has also held meetings with the Chief Minister and heads of various security institutions to inform them about the hardships faced by border-linked traders, pickup drivers, and laborers.

Warning of future action, he said that if the current situation continues and bribery at check posts is not brought to an end, he will once again be compelled to bring thousands of people onto the streets. He added that as an MPA, he can personally testify that traders connected to border businesses, along with drivers and workers, are being mistreated and humiliated at check posts due to the absence of a clear policy or standard operating procedures.

He further announced that if the authorities fail to address these issues, a grand jirga will soon be convened to decide the future course of action.