LAHORE: Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar said on Thursday that officers are posted purely on merit while police and administrative officials have been made totally independent, to perform official duties. “The past rulers weakened the departments through nepotism and culture of recommendations,” he said, adding: “There is no pressure on officers in the performance of their duties, as the PTI has freed the departments from political pressure and intervention; the officers are performing their duties according to rules while the supremacy of merit and transparency has been ensured at every level.”

The CM said vilification is the ingrained culture of PML-N’s leaders, having no resemblance with the centuries-old societal traditions of the province of Punjab. In a statement, the CM strongly reprobated Rohail Asghar, PML-N MNA over his statement and said he should be ashamed of terming name-calling a colloquial tradition. Is the opposition educating the youth about giving someone a mouthful, he regretted and said the perversity of the opposition leaders has rattled everyone.

The CM further said the Punjab government has catered to the needs of every sector in the budget 2021-22 and sufficient funds have been allocated for the development of the social sector.

“A 110 percent increase has been made in the social sector’s allocations. An 87 percent increase has been made for infrastructural development, as Rs 145.40 billion are reserved for it. Similarly, Rs 91.41 billion are given to special programs while enhancing a 92 percent increase. A 234 percent rise has also been made for the production sector, he added.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021