KARACHI, May 23: President Pervez Musharraf said on Friday that the local government system would stay as it was a futuristic system for the betterment of common man.
He was speaking at a gathering of the district Nazims of Sindh at Governor’s House.
“Our government has introduced the local government system in the country. I want to say that this has come to stay,” the president said.
Gen Musharraf said nobody could remove this system and there should not be any doubt about it.
Referring to the feedback he received from various walks of life and international donor agencies, including the Asian Development Bank and the World Bank, the president said people had been appreciating the local government system.
“They have been appreciating this system for its potential to serve the common man. I have no doubt about its potential in solving problems of people,” he said.
Criticizing the opposition to devolution plan, he said it was unfortunate that these elements paid less attention to the national interest and the people and were more inclined to their own interest.
Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad, Chief Minister Ali Mohammad Mahar, Corps Commander Lt-Gen Tariq Waseem Ghazi, Minister for Privatization Dr Abdul Hafeez Shaikh, senior Sindh minister Syed Sardar Ahmed, Sindh Local Government Minister Mohammad Hussain, adviser to chief minister on home department Aftab Shaikh were present on the occasion.
LAW AND ORDER: President Musharraf said that there was a perceptible improvement on the law and order front in the country.
“There is no sectarian, religious or ethnic violence. We have broken the back of all the gangs,” he said and added that credit for this must be given to the law enforcement agencies as this was a job well done by them.
The president was addressing a gathering at Manora during his visit to the Karachi Port Trust.
Gen Musharraf pointed out that all those persons on whom head money of millions of rupees was fixed were either dead or put behind bars.
The president said there was only one notorious man left but the government was getting very close to get him.
He stated that the country had not witnessed any sectarian trouble or religious problem and all those involved in attacks on churches or schools etc were behind bars or killed.
The president said: “Now we only have to deal with the incidents of dacoities and car-lifting in cities like Karachi and Lahore.
Gen Musharraf was of the view that such incidents were more to do with economic development and reduction of poverty than any thing else.
He stressed that we would have to improve our economy, reduce poverty, generate jobs for the poors which, he maintained, were the root-causes of dacoities and thefts.—APP
