RAWALPINDI, Jan 31: Uplift projects in Rawalpindi have come to a virtual halt due to the ongoing confrontation between PML-N and PML-Q, as the former has withheld development funds and the latter is crying for financial support to undertake the public welfare schemes.
The provincial government has already cut development expenditure resulting in the closure of many mega projects while the persistent ban on release of uplift fund is also rapidly ruining the city’s infrastructure.
Rawalpindi is one of the districts in Punjab which has become a victim of political rivalry. The seven towns in the district are governed by nazims affiliated with the PML-Q whose funds have been stopped by the provincial government of the PML-N.
“Uplift funds of the district worth Rs250 million have been withheld by Punjab government and we cannot provide even municipal services to the residents properly. The general public is suffering a lot at the hands of the PML-N,” City Nazim Raja Javed Ikhlas told Dawn on Saturday.
He said the provincial government was not willing to execute the uplift schemes through the local government. He complained that the government was not only victimizing its political rivals but was also disgracing the general public.
Similarly, Rawal Town Nazim Sheikh Rashid Shafique said no new initiative had been taken in the city resulting in collapse of infrastructure due to over-population and influx of outsiders to the city.
“I wonder as to why people do not take to the streets when they are facilitated neither by provincial government nor the city district government? There is a law of jungle and the nominees of Punjab government are not bothered about the public,” he added.
The ongoing tussle between the PML-Q’s elected representatives and PML-N has confused the people who knock at the doors of both parties for getting their problems resolved and often there is overlapping among various government departments.
If someone wants to get a no-objection certificate (NOC) for building a home, he has to approach both the TMO and the town nazim, as there is still ambiguity over power distribution and TMO does not accept the approval of the respective town nazim and vice versa.
This practice has annoyed people to a great extent but there is no department or officer who could put an end to the issue. As a result, the residents wait for a long time to get their jobs done.
The Rawal town nazim and the TMO Irfan Salim Butt recently punched each other after the latter issued an NOC to a contractor without informing the town nazim. They are still at war with each other and the residents have to bear the brunt of their rivalry.
However, DCO Rawalpindi Imdadullah Bosal says things would improve with the passage of time and there would be no ambiguity over power jurisdictions, adding people should contact his office on any complicated or controversial issue.
He said the district administration had also set up an online complaint centre in order to facilitate the masses, adding political rivalry should not take its toll on innocent residents.