PESHAWAR, Sept 29: NWFP Governor Syed Iftikhar Hussain Shah here on Monday urged women councillors to drop their demand for honorarium.

He said this while speaking as the chief guest at a two-day-long provincial conference entitled ‘Towards developing a support network for women councillors’ organised by the Aurat Foundation.

Urging women councillors to adopt a more effective and efficient role, he said they should assign a greater priority to their duty as public representatives instead of demanding honorarium in return for their services.

Iftikhar Hussain Shah highlighted the increased representation of women in the local government system, saying that they had been given 33 per cent representation in every local government council, adding that they should respond by becoming more active.

He said that under the new system no one enjoyed discretionary powers.

He urged women councillors to create greater awareness, especially about their rights, saying that they should also foster among women a greater sense of responsibility.

Earlier, women councillors called for fixing a monthly honorarium in return for their services.

Referring to issues raised by women councillors about development programmes, he said that councillors must focus their attention on projects for the welfare of women.

They should adopt a collective approach in this respect, the NWFP governor said.

Senior minister Sirajul Haq, chief guest in the second session of the conference, said that the provincial government would take up the issue of honorarium for women councillors with the federal government.

He also said that the provincial government would build separate offices for women councillors in every district council .

District Nazim Peshawar Azam Afridi highlighted the working of the local government system as well as its achievements during the last two years.

Nusrat Jehan from Swabi, Shehnaz Bibi from Swat, Sanjida Bibi from Dera Ismail Khan and Shakeela Rehan from Peshawar highlighted difficulties faced by women councillors.