LAHORE, Oct 29: None of district and tehsil governments have become formally functional in the country pending elections of naib nazims, who are the actual custodians of the councils.

The situation has arisen because of the separate election of nazims and naib nazims of district and tehsil councils. Their nazims were elected on Oct 6 and had taken oath along with members of their councils, and nazims, their naibs and members of union councils on Oct 17.

The members and nazims of the local governments of the four earthquake-hit NWFP districts had taken oath on Oct 19.

Sources said on Saturday naib nazims were presiding officers of meetings of district and tehsil councils according to the local government order.

But since they have not yet been elected, the councils are still to function. The district councils are also yet to pass their budgets at least in Punjab for the year 2005-06 but this is possible only after the election of their naib nazims.

The previous tehsil councils in Punjab had passed their respective budgets for the year 2005-06 before the elections.

The officials said with the taking of oath by the newly-elected representatives of the local governments, the caretakers, who were running them in view of the elections, had ceased to retain the authority. And since the councils had not yet started functioning, the district and tehsil governments had been paralyzed, they said.

The district nazims are working, especially arranging relief goods for the quake-hit people, but they are bound to operate according to the decisions of their respective councils, particularly with regard to policy and financial affairs.

The nazims cannot operate on their own and the real institution is the council. “They derive their powers from the council. As it doesn’t exist, they cannot initiate development projects or run its affairs,” the officials said.

Meanwhile, it has been learnt that many people, who had failed to contest the elections of district or tehsil nazims, have invaded their respective councils through the reserved seats of peasants and workers.

Sources said they would now try to become naib nazims of district or tehsil councils and were out to appease the authorities concerned for permission. “Naib nazims will be selected from amongst the members of district or tehsil councils,” they said.