April 24, 2008	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 17, 1429

PESHAWAR, April 23: The District Council of Peshawar through a unanimously-adopted resolution on Wednesday asked members of national and provincial assemblies to stop interference in affairs of local government bodies.

The council meeting was presided over by convener Razaullah Khan Chagharmati.

The council resumed discussion on a resolution moved by Nahqai Union Council Nazim Gauhar Ali on Tuesday. Mr Ali said an MNA had moved a resolution in the National Assembly that local government bodies were nothing more than a source of corruption.

Taking part in the debate, Rehmatullah, Dr Liaquat Ali, Shamim Qaiser, Sahib Singh, Saeed Zahir, Abdul Qadir Saraf, Nazeer Baghi, Allah Dad, Bakht Naseer, Gauhar Ali, Gulshan Yousuf, Hayat Bhatti, Usman Khan, Abdul Wahid Qadri, Kifayatullah, Khalid Khan and Ali Qadir said people had easy access to local bodies and parliamentarians could hardly be approached by the common man.

According to them, members of local bodies had never indulged in corruption.

They asked the MNA to withdraw his resolution, otherwise members of local bodies would hold protest demonstrations against him.

They said in case of shortcomings, parliamentarians should improve the system, rather than speaking against it.

They urged NWFP Senior Minister Bashir Ahmed Bilour to attend a council session to know problems of the members.

The members also asked for installing two tube-wells and two transformers in each union council, which had already been approved.

They asked officials of the city district government to present in the council the record of special funds and a list of new recruitments in different devolved departments.

The convener expressed anger over the absence of officials of different government departments from the meeting and said they should not be allowed in the council hall till they submitted written explanation about their absence.

Taking notice of some complaints, he asked officials concerned to ensure that the Khazana Sugar Mills paid arrears to sugarcane farmers within two weeks.

The members also asked for taking legal action against officials who had registered a land of the diocese of Peshawar in the People’s Mandi area to a bishop and called for a probe into the matter.

They also demanded early recovery of two kidnapped people of Sikh community form Hangu.