Lahore, April 30, 2019 (PPI-OT): Punjab Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar presided over the provincial parliamentary party meeting at the cafeteria of Punjab Assembly here on Tuesday. Addressing the meeting, the Chief Minister thanked the parliamentarians for reposing their confidence on him during the previous meeting and assured them that he will come up to their expectations. You are my lieutenants and I am your companion. I understand your problems and we will jointly work in such a way for public welfare that it will always be remembered in history.
I have already said that my every assembly member is the chief minister and I again reiterate this commitment that you are the chief minister and your genuine work will be done on priority basis. He said that a gap had occurred in meeting with the assembly members due to some engagements; however, I am restarting meetings with the assembly members now. We will solve the problems of the people by visiting divisions and districts and the prestige and honour of assembly members will be restored because your respect is my respect.
Government will give a priority to the advice of assembly members in all the measures, he added. He said that people of the province will be served in consultation with the elected representatives. The Chief Minister said that local bodies system of the previous tenure was full of errors and added that a new local bodies system is being introduced to rectify the past mistakes. The people will be empowered in the new local bodies system, he added. Metropolitan corporations will be set up in every division of the province and development funds worth Rs.40 billion will be devolved to the grassroots. The Punjab Assembly members are making a new parliamentary history by approving the new local bodies system and, today, a new history is being written, he said.
He said that tehsil and panchayat councils will be established in the villages while metropolitan corporations, municipal corporations and neighbourhood councils will be set up in the cities. He said that elections of urban and tehsil councils will be held on party basis while the elections of neighbourhood councils and panchayat will be held on non-party basis. He said that duration of local bodies is being unanimously fixed for a period of four years. He said that Punjab Assembly has taken a lead with regard to legislation in the whole of the country.
The public welfare legislation made by the PTI government during the last eight months is unprecedented. With the grace of Allah Almighty, the process of public friendly legislation will continue in the future through the Punjab assembly, he added. Punjab Law Minister Raja Basharat said that legal mechanism has been adopted for the new local government bill and the opinion of the opposition has been given importance.
He said that new local government act is being introduced with mutual consensus. He said that restriction of education for mayor and speaker is being removed. The credit of new local government system goes to Prime Minister Imran Khan and Chief Minister Usman Buzdar who has guided at every occasion. He said that PTI government is going to introduce a fully empowered local government system in Punjab province. He also gave a briefing about the new local government bill. Auqaf Minister Saeed-ul-Hassan Shah led the Fateha prayer for the departed soul of father of Sardar Ahmad Ali Dreshak MPA.
For more information, contact:
Directorate General Public Relations, Punjab (DGPR)
Government of the Punjab
21-Mahmood Gaznavi Road (Abbot Road), Lahore, Pakistan
Tel: +92-42-99201390-1-2
Fax: +92-42-99201371-2
E-mail: info@dgpr.punjab.gov.pk
Website: www.dgpr.punjab.gov.pk