Wadood Jan
PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Advisor to Chief Minister on Information, Kamran Bangash said Tuesday that in September 2021 a responsible local government will be formed in the province.
Addressing media person after KP Provincial Cabinet meeting Minister for Local Government Akbar Ayub, Advisor to Chief Minister on Information Kamran Bangash and Minister for Industries Abdul Karim said that establishing an empowered local government system in the province is one of the top priorities of the present government.
Briefing media persons, Kamran Bangash said that the incumbent government is committed to holding local body elections in the province under its party manifesto and constitutional responsibility.
He said that the cabinet hands overtask to the Local Government Minister Akbar Ayub to resolve all issues with Election Commission regarding the holding of local body elections in the province.
“The government of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa was ready for local elections in 2020 but delayed the polls due to corona pandemic,” Kamran said.
He maintained that in the 2015 local body elections the local government system was empowered at the grass-root level with far-reaching results.
He said that Chief Minister Mahmood Khan congratulated the Cabinet and the people of the province on the completion of the process of extending Health Card Plus to 100 percent of the population of the province.
He stated that at the cabinet meeting the Chief Minister termed the Health Card Plus Scheme as an important step towards the establishment of a welfare state and a historic project of the province.
“The Cabinet was also apprised of the situation regarding sugar and flour in the province,” Kamran said and added that at present there is an abundance of flour and sugar in the province.
Kamran Bangash said that the cabinet has tasked the Cabinet Food Security Committee to prepare recommendations for the cabinet in the coming days to meet the sugar needs in the province.
He said that the Committee will formulate a report and recommendations in two weeks to meet the sugar shortage of four to five lakh metric tons.
“At present, the province needs 9.5 million metric tons of sugar while the production is 3.5 million,” the Advisor said.
Speaking on the testing agencies, Kamran said that the Chief Minister has taken notice of the complaints regarding private testing agencies and formed a committee. “The committee will make recommendations for streamlining the affairs of private testing agencies in the province,” he said adding that the committee will also make recommendations for speeding up the recruitment process in the Public Service Commission, including organizing ETA.
He said that at the cabinet meeting the CM formed a committee headed by Finance Minister Timur Jhagra to prepare recommendations for cabinet on retirement age after Supreme Court’s decision.
He added that the committee will formulate final recommendations on retirement age and present them to the cabinet.
