Sialkot:Provincial Minister for Local Government Punjab Mian Zeeshan Rafique has said that a high-level committee is working on the legal draft to improve and make the current local government system effective under the direction of Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz.
In the light of recent census, new local government delimitations are indispensable, he said and added that the purpose of creating smaller units in the restructuring of local government is to ensure devolution of powers to the grassroots level and better performance of administrative affairs because only a strong local government system can ensure the provision of solid waste and other municipal services including sanitation in rural areas.
He expressed these views while addressing a provincial level conference on the topic of early elections for the establishment of local governments in Punjab in collaboration with Bedari-South Asia Partnership, HomeNet and Wise.
Members of National and Provincial Assembly Brigadier (R) Aslam Ghumman, Chaud
hry Tariq Subhani, Special Secretary Local Government Punjab Asia Gul, Deputy Director South Asia Partnership Pakistan Irfan Mufti, Executive Director Baidarie Arshad Mahmood Mirza, Vice Chairman Baidarie Hina Noreen, Executive Director Homenet Pakistan Laila Azhar, Executive Director Wise Bushra Khaliq, CO Idea Salman Abid, Salman Ghani, Iftikhar Chaudhary, Shaheena Attique-ur-Rehman, Abdul Shakur Mirza, Sufi Abdul Jalil (Chacha Cricketer) besides representatives of various political and social organizations and workers participated in the conference.
Provincial Local Government Minister Mian Zeeshan Rafique said that the Chief Minister Punjab wants to have an efficient and sustainable solid waste management system in rural areas and run on a no-loss-no-profit basis.
He assured the conference participants of the government’s commitment and reiterated its commitment that the new local government law would be comprehensive and significantly different from the previous law and workable.
Provincial Local Gove
rnment Minister said that he was committed to establishing a local government system that would truly serve the needs of the people.