Wisal Yousafzai
PESHAWAR: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government has announced that around 28000 clerics across the province will be given monthly honorary of Rs.10, 000 as it will affect the government exchequer annually by 3.25 billion rupees.
The decision was made in the cabinet decision by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Chief Minister, According to the detail the monthly honorary will be given to those clerics who were certified from recognized board or Wefaqul Madaras.
It was also announced that clerics or Imam will be the permanent resident of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province while the monthly honorary will be transfer via bank account through their accounts.
An officer of the Finance Department Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on the condition to be not mention his name said that KP government has announce monthly honorary for the clerics but it will highly casted on the financial exchequer .
He further said that already the government were spending huge amount of budget on current budget in the form of salary, adding and claim that it was just announce by the government for political scoring.
The information obtain through Right to Information Act from the Auqaf Department Khyber Pakhtunkhwa inform that after the announcement of the CM provincial and divisional level committees has been constituted to identify the illegible candidate for the monthly honorary.
It is further said that Assistant Commissioner of the concern sub-division will be the chairman of the “Sub-divisional Scrutiny Committee” while assistant director of Local Government department and Rural Development Department will be the member cum secretary of the committee.
Similarly Tehsil and Municipal officer, Tehseel Katib Auqaf department, representative of local police / special branch, Secretary Union Council and Neighborhood will be the member of the committee.
The documents further said that clerics or Ulama will be certified from Wefaqul Madaris Salafia, Faislabad Pakistan, Wifaqul Madaris Al Arabia Garden Town Sher Shah Road Multan, Rabita tul Madaris Al Islamia , Mansoor Multan Road Lahore, Wifaq ul Madaris Al Shia , Jamia Al-Muntazar, H Block Model Town Lahore, Tanzeem ul Madris Ahle Sunnat , Pakistan8- Ravi Park, Ravi Road Lahore.
It was also said that Jamia Masjid where Juma prayers will be pray were eligible to entitle with honorary while those mosques where Juma prayers were not pray they were not eligible for the stipend.
The data received by the Auqaf department till filing this story as around 27,096 mosques where Juma prayers were pray while more information getting by the department and it might be reach to 50,000 said by the department.
When Contacted Maulana Hussain Ahmad of Jamia Usmania about the stipend and monthly honorary for the clerics he said that it was announce by the KP government when election is near in the country , adding that the announcement was purely for political scoring.
He added that they will accept this package when it was maintain sustainable and the government was announce it in annual budget to maintain it sustainable.
When Contacted with Special Assistant of CM KP on Rule and Law Mr. Arif Yousaf he said that it was announce by PTI government in the history of Pakistan to give monthly stipend to the clerics.
He further said that it was the idea of Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf chairman Imran Khan and the CM KP was agree with the idea of PTI chairman, adding that PTI government wants to work for the un-privileged communities as clerics and Ulama were ignore in the past as they were the real changer of the society.
When asked either the government will carry the package after election Arif Yousaf said that PTI is hopeful that in the next general election they will win the 2018 general election and if they came in the centre they will sustain the package and will increase it.
He informed that KP government give this stipend from their own development fund and this notion is wrong that any NGOs or donor agencies were supporting by the government.
