Sindh Chief Minister, Syed Qaim Ali Shah has hinted at change in portfolios in Sindh Cabinet to accommodate two ministers each from PPP and MQM who are without portfolios so far. Talking to journalists at an Iftar party on Tuesday night, the Chief Minister.
While answering a question about expansion or reshuffle in Sindh cabinet, said that this issue has been talked about two or three times. He said the ministers who have portfolios must certainly get chance to work, although certain portfolios can be changed to accommodate two PPP and two MQM Ministers who are without any job.
"We have yet to work a lot and we have big challenges before us and we will work to confront them", he said adding that Cabinet members should not think whether they would get their portfolio or their portfolio will be taken back. "Such things only create unnecessary confusion", he added.
He pointed out: "We have just settled down, process of democracy completed with the election of President and now our attention is fixed on problems of people and implementation the vision and programme which Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto left behind".
The present government, Qaim Ali Shah said, is fully aware that people are faced with lot of problems and there is unemployment and growing cost of living. He said that positive results of government initiatives are appearing and prices of items of daily use have registered a decline.
In Sukkur, he informed, atta is being sold at less than Rs 22 per-kg, rice prices declined by 40 percent while prices of pulses, ghee and other essential items are also coming down. Unlike the previous governments, he said, the present government is not indulging in nepotism and rather providing jobs to eligible youth on merit for which full care is being taken of rules and regulations.
Qaim Ali Shah informed that statistics have been collected at UC level for Shaheed Benazir Bhutto Youth Development Programme and distribution of government land as to how many people have their house, how many of a family are in job -an exercise carried out for the first time.
He disclosed that planning has been done to allot 25 acres of land instead of 8 acres in the name of a woman of landless haris. He said the woman will be given cultivable and not barrren land. "Sindh will, Insha Allah, have a bumper Rabi crop and wheat will not have to be imported", he announced and added that rice crop too this year will be surplus and it will be exported as per federal government policy.
To a question about quota for jobs for MQM, the Chief Minister said MQM will certainly be provided a share as they have been given a mandate by people in Karachi and Hyderabad. In this regard a core committee has been formed on which senior Minister Pir Mazharul Huq represents the PPP while MQM has four representatives.
He said all issues would be resolved through mutual consultation. Replying to a question regarding law and order, he said overall there has been 40 percent improvement. He said the crime rate in Karachi and Sukkur regions had been higher which is now gradually reducing.
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