Provincial autonomy bill to be presented in National Assembly: Saifullah

Federal Minister for Inter Provincial Co-ordination, Salim Saifullah Khan has said that the government is keen to present provincial autonomy bill in the upcoming National Assembly session. The government wanted to give wider autonomy to provinces and therefore, had been working on a bill, he told APP here on Monday.
He informed that there were 17 items considered by the government relating to the autonomy matter, which included relations among federal, provincial and local governments, reviewing of federal and provincial concurrent lists, institutional mechanisms of CCI and NEC, distribution of natural resources and others.
"Suggestions of all the stakeholders are being taken into consideration, so that a complete consensus can be reached over the issue," he added. He said that similar proposals about provincial autonomy were also presented by the legislators from MQM, PPPP belonging to Sindh province and Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party chief Mahmood Khan Achakzai.
"The ministry backed their proposals as granting of provincial autonomy is need of hour, the minister added. He regretted opposition's continuous boycott on provincial autonomy issue. "The matter does not belong to PML alone but it is a national issue and every one has the responsibility to work for securing national interests," he added.
He said IPC ministry and National Reconstruction Bureau were working over the bill for the last three years. Saifullah said their priority would be to pass the bill from the present assemblies.
The minister said there were provisions in the Constitution of 1973 on Provincial Autonomy issue. "But unfortunately the previous regimes never given any heed to the vital issue and made no serious efforts for its implementation," he added.
On the other hand, he said, the present government deserves credit for bringing the dormant issue into limelight. While talking to a PML delegation from Southern districts of NWFP here, the minister said people of the province voted the religious alliance with the hope that it would bring peace and prosperity but all their hopes had dashed to the ground.
He said the NWFP province was witnessing the worst ever law and order situation under Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA) led government. He said the province was passing through a critical stage as the security situation had been touching the lowest ebb.
The minister advised the provincial government to stop levelling allegations against the federal government for their own failures. Condemning the terrorist incidents of Swat and DI Khan, the minister said such cowardly acts against innocent lives could not deter government's resolve to root out this menace in all its forms and manifestations.