LAHORE: Chief Minister Usman Buzdar says the dream of a new province in south Punjab will come true during the tenure of the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government to mitigate the sufferings of the people of that region.

He was speaking to federal minister Makhdoom Khusro Bakhtiar and Punjab Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht at the chief minister’s office here on Sunday.

Mr Buzdar said the PTI government was committed to redressing the grievances and deprivation of people of the south Punjab.

“The south Punjab would be the first region to enjoy the dividends of the change brought about by the PTI government in the centre and Punjab,” he said and added that the Punjab budget for the current fiscal had given priority to south Punjab and other less developed areas of the province.

“The situation of hospitals and educational institutions in south Punjab would soon be transformed. Creation of south Punjab province will remain the flagship initiative of the Naya Pakistan,” the CM claimed.

Mr Bakhtiar briefed the chief minister about the progress on the working on creation of south Punjab province.

Meanwhile, the chief minister held a meeting with Chief Secretary Yousaf Naseem Khokhar and discussed administrative matters, good governance, transparency and adoption of austerity. He directed the chief secretary to refuse any request from any quarters that did not fulfill merit criteria, saying that the bureaucracy should root out corruption from the government departments.

The chief minister stressed the bureaucracy should listen to the public complaints and redress them at the earliest as impartial administration could play a proactive role to perform official tasks and better governance.

Mr Buzdar also met the people who had come to see him from different cities and listened to their complaints. He issued orders to resolve the genuine complaints on the spot.

Published in Dawn, October 22nd, 2018