KARACHI, March 5: The Pakistan Peoples Party has condemned the attitude of the National Executive Council, which while announcing projects worth billions of rupees, has failed to address the soaring prices issue.

Pointing out that in the last two months alone, the price hike graph had gone up by 10 per cent adding miseries to the life of the common man. The party called upon the government to rein the increasing prices of essential commodities.

This demand was made at the PPP Sindh council meeting on Saturday, which met at the party secretariat with its President Syed Qaim Ali Shah in the chair.

Addressing a press conference after the meeting, Mr Shah said the council expressed grave concern over the ongoing injustices with Sindh, which was the main cause of the increasing hunger, poverty and lawlessness.

The most important issue was the Kalabagh Dam, adding that Sindh was being deprived from its due share of water, which he said was a calculated move resulting in the devastation of crops.

He criticized the attitude of Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, and said the premier had no idea of the hardships of the common man. He did not even bother to visit Sindh to get himself apprised of the problems being faced by people there, he remarked. "Being a banker, he has no interest with the problems of the common man," he pointed out.

Mr Shah, who was accompanied by party leaders Nafees Siddiqui, Dr Fehmida Mirza, Waqar Mehdi and others, said the president and prime minister claimed themselves to be the creations of Parliament, but asked as to what type of democracy they believe in.

"If they were created by the Parliament, as they claim so, why are they not paying due attention to the resolutions adopted by the assemblies and parliament against the construction of Kalabagh Dam."

He maintained that the rulers were not paying any heed to the ongoing protest of people in Balochistan led by the Pakistan Oppressed Nations Movement.

Recalling the party's stand on the controversial dam, Mr Shah called for a consensus on the dam by all provinces.

He asked why President Musharraf was in a hurry to construct the Kalabagh Dam, and not wait for the report of the committee constituted on the issue by the government itself.

Mr Shah advised the rulers to respect and give due consideration to the resolutions adopted by the assemblies of Balochistan, Sindh and the NWFP against the Kalabagh Dam and avoid any undemocratic approach.

To a question, Mr Shah said that Asif Ali Zardari was a respectable colleague and a worker of the party while Ms Bhutto was the party's leader. Her decision to give any office to Mr Zardari would be acceptable to all, he added.

Earlier, in his opening statement, Mr Shah said the party had decided to organize a memorable gathering at Garhi Khuda Bux, Larkana to commemorate the death anniversary of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto on April 4.

"The meeting also decided to take out a big caravan from Sindh to Lahore on April 16 to join the reception to be accorded to Mr Zardari on his arrival from Dubai," he said.