PESHAWAR, Oct 18: Lawmakers on Tuesday lauded the role of welfare wings of various religious and political parties, carrying out relief work in badly affected remote and inaccessible areas.
Continuing debate on rescue and relief measures being taken by private, government and international organizations in calamity-hit districts, the lawmakers urged the government to take concrete measures to save displaced people.
They regretted over what they called an alien attitude of government agencies and departments towards the volunteers, who were reaching on foot in the isolated villages to supply relief goods. They asked the government to expedite its efforts and extend logistical support to volunteers engaged in relief work.
Earlier, Bashir Ahmed Bilour of the Awami National Party wanted to speak about the Evaluation And Testing Authority’s paper-leak scandal, but Speaker Bakht Jehan Khan, who was presiding over the session, refused him permission to speak any issue other than earthquake and its devsatation.
The lawmakers praised the volunteers of Edhi Foundations, Al- Khidmat Foundation, Jamiat-ut-Dawa, Islamic Relief and others who were looking after widows, orphans, injured and displaced families across the disaster zone.
They said these volunteers were doing more relief work than any other government agencies in the affected areas. They underlined the need for creating effective and permanent coordination among the government departments and the independent relief rescue organizations for early execution of rehabilitation plan.
Initiating the debate, Farah Aqil Shah of the Awami National Party regretted that attendants and relatives of the injured people, who were admitted to the public sector hospital in Peshawar, were not provided with food.
She said it was inhuman to ignore them as they were from the affected areas. She called upon the government to provide artificial limbs, free-of-cost, to those whose leg, hand or foot had been imputed. She criticized the PML government for banning adoption of orphan children. She asked the government to allow each issueless family to adopt an orphan boy or a girl.
Muzaffar Said from the Muttahidda Majlis-I-Amal proposed The government to make immediate payment of pension and other funds to the families of all those government employees, who were died during the earthquake. Mr Said urged the provincial and federal governments to direct the departments concerned to cooperate with the bereaved families.
Opposition Leader Shahzada Gistasip Khan asked the government to launch an awareness campaign, which should educate relief workers, officials and affected people about the aftershocks- related precautionary measures.
He said eight people were died when they came under a landslide during an spell of aftershock in Balakot. He asked the government to launch a massive campaign through print and electronic media to inform them (affected people) about the dangerous results of the landslides and land erosion after a quake.
Maulana Nizamuddin of the MMA complained that this august House had discussed the devastation caused by the earthquake and some future measures for the rehabilitation of the people yesterday, but there was a black out in PTV about assembly’s proceedings.
He said the lawmakers spoke on the ineptness of the federal government, which was amassing the financial aid, but doing nothing for the affected and injured people stuck in remote areas.
Independent MPA, Tahir Bin Yamin, said that 600 villages had reportedly been destroyed in Balakot, which resulted into the death of thousands of people. He asked the provincial government to make its own survey of losses of life and property.
MPA Ghazala Habib from Mansehra said that one could not speak About miseries of hapless people whose kith and kin died during the earthquake. Hundreds of displaced people, gathered in the open, waiting for shelter and food. The lack of coordination and initiative among government agencies had multiplied the suffering of the calamity-hit people in Manshera.
She asked the government to provide them (affected and divided families) tents and blankets as they were in dire need of these two items. Despite tall claims by the Islamabad, affected people were without any relief goods, she added.
Later, the chair adjourned the session till Friday morning.