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| June 12, 2003 | Thursday | Rabi-us-Sani 11, 1424 |
Nazims to take back resignations
PESHAWAR, June 11: All 24 District Nazims in the NWFP have decided to withdraw their en masse resignations after assurances their powers will not be curtailed, a spokesman said on Wednesday.
The Nazims had resigned recently alleging victimisation and interference by the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal alliance which rules the province.
The District Nazims’ representative Pervez Khattak told a news conference they had received assurances from President Pervez Musharraf as well as NWFP Chief Minister Akram Durrani that their powers under the local government system would not be abridged.
“We made it clear to President Musharraf that the MMA government curtailed our powers and ignored us in all matters,” said Azam Afridi, District Nazim of Peshawar.
Mr Khattak said District Nazims would withdraw resignations immediately once the provincial government restored their power. “The chief minister has promised he would do so within seven days.”
The District Nazims, who represent non-MMA parties, had accused the alliance of withholding development funds and filing baseless charges of embezzlement and nepotism against them.
The MMA government had denied the allegations and said the corruption charges were justified.
The president travelled to the province to meet District Nazims on Tuesday and gave a personal guarantee to protect the local government system, which he introduced after his October 1999 coup. “The local government system is here to stay,” he said.
The MMA alleged the District Nazims row was manoeuvred to pressure the alliance because of its protest campaign with other opposition parties to force Gen Musharraf to surrender self-declared rule and quit the army.—AFP
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