MANSEHRA/SWABI: A multiparty conference, attended by chairmen of tehsil and village councils, on Monday threatened to launch street agitation if the government did not release development funds to local bodies.
“Four years on, local government representatives have been deprived of development funds, powers and rights guaranteed under the Local Government Act, 2013,” Qazi Zahidullah, tehsil president of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, told the conference held in Oghi, Mansehra.
He stated that the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf government had failed to address the civic issues faced by people at the grassroots level due to the continued withholding of development funds to local governments.
“If the government was not sincere about empowering the local government system, it should not have held the elections at all,” Mr Zahidullah, who also served as tehsil deputy chairman, said.
Oghi tehsil chairman Nawabzada Hassam said the conference also decided to launch a street agitation if local governments were not financially empowered.
Shergar village council chairman Ijaz Ahmad told the conference that local government elections had been held in line with the vision of PTI founder Imran Khan, yet people were still being denied development.
“We have no funds to execute development schemes as the government has withheld resources and deprived us of the rights guaranteed under the Local Government Act, 2013,” he said.
Jamaat-i-Islami tehsil emir Riaz Osama demanded the release of Rs50 million approved for Oghi tehsil council.
“The local MPA has also withheld funds and diverted them to his own schemes, which is unacceptable to us,” he alleged. Chajar-Syedain and Shahkot village councils’ chairmen Zahir Swati and Pervez Khan urged the chief minister to order provision of funds to LGs.
Meanwhile, local government representatives, including Razaar tehsil mayor Ghulam Haqqani, while addressing a protest meeting in Swabi on Monday held the PTI government responsible for ‘weakening’ the local bodies by ‘withholding’ their funds.
Addressing the protesters, Ghulam Haqqani expressed serious concern over the ‘curtailment’ of funds and powers for the local government representatives.
“We were elected to serve people, but have been kept deprived of resources, which is not only affecting development works but also causing public agony,” he said.
Other leaders demanded the immediate provision of funds so they could execute welfare projects.
They also expressed their determination that if their demands were not met, the scope of the protest would be expanded. Through a unanimously adopted resolution the participants appealed to the KP government to take practical steps for strengthening the local bodies because a strong local government system was the guarantee of a strong democracy.
Published in Dawn, December 23rd, 2025