KARAK: Elders of Kandokhel village here have complained about shortage of staff in the local basic health unit (BHU) and dilapidated condition of its building.

Former councillors, including Maulana Waheed Shah, Niamatullah and others, told mediapersons here on Wednesday that the hospital was supposed to cater to healthcare needs of over 15,000 dwellers of Kandokhel village, but it was without a medical officer since long.

They said that the patients were forced to go to the district headquarters hospital, Karak, for treatment of common diseases. They said the women and children were the worst sufferers due to lack of any male or female doctor in the hospital.

The elders said that the health facility was established in 1978, but it was still run through paramedical staff.

They said that they had brought these issues into the notice of elected representatives and the district health officer, but so far no action was taken. They asked the health department to immediately appoint doctors to the hospital and also issue funds for renovation of its building.

LG SYSTEM: Former councillors here have demanded changes in the local government system to make the local bodies more powerful.

The demand was made by them in a meeting chaired by former president of Councillors Ittehad Aziz Khan here on Wednesday. The speakers said on the occasion that the village, tehsil and district councils should be made more powerful instead of few individuals enjoying the offices of village, tehsil and district nazims.

They alleged that the nazims had misused their offices in the last tenure and complained that they bypassed their respective councils in all important decisions and in funds distribution.

The speakers said these councils were the basic units of the LG system and bypassing them actually meant that the power had been accumulated in the hands of few individuals, which was against the essence of democracy.

They said there was no mechanism of vote of no-confidence in the existing local body system on village council level which made the councillors helpless in the accountability of nazim.

Published in Dawn, August 6th, 2020