Mayor of Karachi Waseem Akhtar (L) and Chief Minister of Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah (R)

KARACHI: "Why was I not invited?" Mayor Waseem Akhtar asked Monday night, shooting the question towards Chief Minister Sindh Syed Murad Ali Shah in an open expression of disappointment that an inauguration event was held without him.

"I wanted to be there to inaugurate [Jahangir Park]," Akhtar complained, upset that he was neither informed of the event nor called as the chief guest to open the new place to the public.

The mayor of Karachi was speaking at the concluding event of a 50-day, Bahria Town-sponsored cleaning campaign in the city's Central District.

"I'm upset that I was not invited," Akhtar stated.

"I should get these funds to utilise them. This is the job of the KMC (Karachi Metropolitan Corporation)," he lamented.

"Our priority was to make sure Karachi receives an uninterrupted supply of water, but we haven't been able to get our hands out of the garbage yet."

Approximately 200,000 tonnes worth of garbage was cleared from the aforementioned area, Akhtar revealed to the audience, which included the district's chairman and vice chairman as well as parliamentarians of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P).

"The ball is now in the court of the Governor House," he said in a metaphorical reference to the 'Karachi Package'.