–Sarwar predicts enforcement of stricter lockdown
LAHORE: Punjab Governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar has hinted that an ordinance may be promulgated to hold officers accountable for delaying official files for more than five days.
Speaking to media and addressing a ceremony organised to distribute ration among poor rickshaw drivers in collaboration with the King Salman Relief Centre and Hayat Foundation at the Governor’s House on Wednesday, the governor said that bureaucrats must perform their duties actively for the progress and prosperity of the country.
King Salman Relief Centre Deputy Director Muhammad Yousaf, Hayat Foundation’s Muhammad Shahzad, governor’s political secretary Mian Kashif Iqbal, Awami Rickshaw Union (ARU) President Majeed Ghauri, social worker Pir Nazim Shah and others were present on the occasion.
Sarwar stressed that it was his life’s dream and objective to ensure safe drinking water for the masses, who were denied a basic human need in this day and age.
Replying to a question, the governor said that it wasn’t the whole bureaucracy that was incompetent but a few black sheep who create hurdles in the country’s smooth functioning.
He said that he would soon promulgate an ordinance to bar government officers from keeping official files for more than five days after consulting with Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan and Chief Minister (CM) Usman Buzdar.
“Blocking a file in an office does not affect a person but the whole department, which is unacceptable,” he said.
“For now, after I expressed reservations against a few bureaucrats, different senior officers have assured me that the Aab-e-Pak Authority work will be executed at a faster pace and all issues will be resolved as well,” he said.
Further, the governor regretted that people had thronged bazaars and markets without protective measures as soon as the government eased down restrictions in the lockdown.
Lamenting the surge in the number of new coronavirus cases, he said the government would be left with no option but to impose a lockdown with stricter restrictions than before.
He concluded by thanking the Punjab Development Network (PDN) for providing ration to over 570,000 poor families since the coronavirus pandemic started showing its wrath in Punjab and also acknowledged the services of Akhwat Foundation, Sarwar Foundation, Sheikh Ijaz Trust and some 60 other social welfare organisations for providing ration to poor families and personal protection equipment (PPE) to doctors in these hard times.
