LAHORE: Punjab Chief Minister Muhammad Shahbaz Sharif has said that PML-N would come upto the expectations of the masses as it has been given unprecedented mandate during the 65 years political history of the country.
"The mandate, especially in Punjab, to the PML-N happens seldom in centuries and it demands respect from the elected representatives", he said during a meeting with the MNAs and MPAs from the Sargodha Division in his office here Sunday.
The Chief Minister said that PML-N would make every effort to rid the country of energy crisis and other outstanding issues.
Shahbaz said that patwari culture will be changed, nefarious trade of spurious medicines will be uprooted, water theft will be curbed and availability of water will be ensured at tail-ends of the canals to promote agriculture.
He said that PML-N would usher in a new era of light after defeating darkness, adding that provincial ministers should keep their doors open to the masses and regularly pay field visits to resolve problems on the spot.
He said that reward and punishment system will be adopted and those serving the people will be encouraged while those taking no interest in the solution of public problems will be removed from their offices.
The Chief Minister said that energy crisis has made the life of people miserable as the former rulers paid no attention to resolving energy problem during their five year tenure.
He said that the former government remained indifferent to the woes of the masses while the nation faced the agony of load-shedding. "Had the previous government made serious efforts to overcome shortage of energy, the masses would not have faced the agony of load-shedding today", he stressed.
He said that PML-N has promised to resolve energy problem and will definitely rid the people of the torture of load-shedding.
He said that PML-N started to make all out efforts to overcome energy shortage soon after assuming power, adding that the circular debt of electricity has crossed the figure of Rs.500 billion and PML-N will also fulfil its promise of curbing circular debt within sixty days.
He said it is ironic that the rich and the poor are equally benefiting from the subsidy given on electricity.
He said that the subsidy given on the use of electricity from zero to 300 units, amounts to Rs. 150 billion while there are line losses and power theft of more than Rs. 200 billion.
He said that these factors are resulting in an increase in circular debt.
He said that subsidy to the poor is justified but it is not the right to give subsidy to the rich.
"Tough decisions will have to be made to put the national economy on the right track", the Chief Minister said.
He said that cost of electricity can be reduced by adopting cheaper sources of power generation, adding that cheap electricity can be produced through coal, hydro power, biogas, biomass and other sources.
He said that there is a need to complete power generation projects based on cheaper alternative sources expeditiously.
Shahbaz Sharif called upon provincial ministers and assembly members to maintain a close contact with the traders, industrialists and businessmen of their respective areas and inform them about the measures taken for resolving energy crisis and also seek their proposals for overcoming this issue.
He said that Nandipur power project is pending for the last two and a half years due to corruption and greed of the former rulers and its cost has increased from Rs.22 billion to Rs. 57 billion.
He said that another amount of Rs.35 billion of the poor nation will now be spent on this project which is a grave injustice. He said that a country which has been begging for the last 65 years cannot afford such losses.
He said that the LNG project evolved in 2010 could not be started due to corrupt rulers and had this project been initiated there would have been abundant gas in the country.
He said that it is the responsibility of provincial ministers and elected representatives to apprise traders and industrialists of the facts. He said that Punjab government will play an effective role for curbing power theft and a task force has been formed for this purpose which has started operating.
He expressed the hope that energy crisis will be overcome with the cooperation of assembly members and the people.
He said that provincial government is formulating a 5-year energy policy with the consultation of all stakeholder for resolving energy problem. He said that the waste of agri items which is available in large quantity can be used for generation of power.
He said that a strategy is being devised for this purpose while legislation will be made and zones will be created.
He said that there is a need for collective wisdom and strenuous efforts to rectify the situation and achieve the goal of national progress and prosperity.
He said that measures have been taken for changing Thana culture and 1000 Sub-Inspectors will be recruited through Public Service Commission on merit and in a transparent manner.
He said that these officials will be imparted modern training and posted at police stations.
He said that matters regarding pay package and promotion of these police officers will be settled so that they could perform their responsibilities with commitment.
He said that corrupt officers will not be tolerated at any cost and it is the duty of elected representatives to point out dishonest officers so that action could be taken against them.
He said that the mandate given by the people will be honoured and masses will be served selflessly whereas Punjab will be made a model province through elimination of corruption, supremacy of law and good governance.
He said that policies will be evolved by the political personalities while bureaucracy will ensure their implementation.
He said that people will judge the government on the basis of merit and justice, adding that no compromise will be made merit.
He said that district committees should pay their role for ensuring transparent use of funds and elected representatives will be given due representation in these committees.
He said that a sum of Rs.93 billion has been allocated for development of south Punjab and all educational facilities will be provided in government schools of this region during this year.
He said that necessary facilities will be made available in all girl schools of the province and billions of rupees have been earmarked in the new budget for this purpose.
He said that provision of potable water is essential for saving the people from diseases and a sum of Rs.12.5 billion has been allocated for this purpose.
Federal Minister of State Amin ul Hasnat, Provincial Ministers Rana Sanaullah Khan, Mujtaba Shuja-ur-Rehman, Raja Ashfaq Sarwar, Tanveer Aslam Malik, Khalil Tahir Sindhu, Begum Zakiya Shahnawaz were also present during the meeting.
Comments
Comments are closed.