FAISALABAD, Nov 23: National Reconstruction Bureau and Devolution Trust for Community Empowerment (DTCE) chairman Danial Aziz has said that power to elected local government representatives will be transferred after Aug 14, 2005.

Speaking to participants in an orientation workshop held for Nazims, Niab Nazims and councilors of Faisalabad Sadar and Chak Jhumra TMAs here on Monday, he said that development trio in Pakistan had been revolving around bureaucracy, politicians and contractors for the last 57 years.

He said certain politicians had created a culture of favourtism and they used development funds as a political bribe, he said, adding that new system had been introduced to eliminate this trend.

He said that Rs280 billion had been spent on development projects under the Social Action Programme by various governments during the last 10 years. He said these funds had been misappropriated and people deprived of basic rights.

He said that Citizen Community Boards (CCBs) had been proposed to undertake development projects at the grassroots level with the direct involvement of masses. He said that 25 per cent development funds had been allocated for CCBs. He said there were only 80 CCBs last year and now 600 CCBs had been formed during the last three months.

Mr Aziz termed the local government system imperative for the progress and prosperity of Pakistan and said that more than 0.250 million people had been associated with 10,120 registered CCBs. They have also raised Rs87 million, he said.

He was critical of elements opposing the system and said that people must expose them and said that people would out rightly reject them in the coming elections. He also supported the demand for honorarium for elected councillors and assured that more funds would be allocated for development schemes through CCBs.

DTCE Chief Executive Officer Masood Islam, District Nazim Zahid Nazir, Sadar Tehsil Nazim Afzal Chaudhry and Chak Jhumra Teshil Nazim Fawad Cheema also addressed.