KARACHI: Leader of the Opposition in Sindh Assembly Firdous Shamim Naqvi while addressing a press conference in Sindh Assembly said the reason for non-availability of facilities to the people of Sindh is Local Government Ordinance 2013.
At present, a strong local government system is needed in the province. The existing laws have made the local bodies powerless and ineffective. PTI members have drafted the Local Government Bill.
The opposition leader Sindh said we want one man and one woman to contest elections on ward level separately. This is the best way to bring women into mainstream politics.
He added, district system should be made urban and rural government have been abolished. Taluka council will be for rural and local area council for cities. Ward council should be formed for population of 7,000 to 10,000.Mayor of the city should be directly elected.
The nazim in the area council or whoever is elected is also directly elected. Funds for rural areas are given by the provincial ministry. There are not so many resources from one taluka to another. Plans can also be made by the two local councils together. All development schemes will be taken up by the taluka council from the local area. The taluka chairman will be elected by a two-thirds majority. Mayor will also have the authority to decide the route of a bus. Councilors will be representatives of the local area council.
He further added, mayor will form the cabinet. A two-third majority will decide in the cabinet. Government representation will be mandatory in the cabinet. In rural areas, women will vote for women. This system will be followed for the first 10 years. Schools will be made by mayor and run by a local council.
The hospitals will be run by the provincial government. Representatives of the cantonment board will also come to the municipality. Mayor's rules will also apply in the cantonment areas. The development of the city will be the responsibility of the mayor.
Fridos shamim naqvi further added, we also want to empower the mayor. We want the mayor to take his own loans. The motor vehicle and services tax will have a formula for sharing with local councils. The collection of agricultural tax will be done by the provincial government. The distribution will be done by the local government department.
He added that not a single opposition bill has been passed till date. If this bill is not approved, we will go to court for legal action. Firdous Shamim Naqvi added, If mayor or someone else commits corruption, he should be punished severely. I am not in favor of plea bargaining in accountability. We will become a party in the petition of the Supreme Court. This law will also be presented to the Prime Minister.
After the press conference, the PTI members of the Provincial Assembly led by Firdous Shamim Naqvi submitted the draft Local Government Bill to the Secretary Sindh Assembly. He was accompanied by PTI Karachi president Khurram Sher Zaman, MPAs Sidra Imran, Arsalan Taj, Bilal Ghaffar, Raja Azhar, Shehzad Qureshi, Dr Seema Zia, Adeel Ahmed, Dr Sanjay Gangwani and Omar Omari.-PR
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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