Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Pervez Khattak has said that the PTI-led government is determined to curb corruption at all levels particularly from government departments, maintain discipline and ensure judicious use of district development funds in the province.
Addressing the PTI district and Tehsil nazims at CM House, here on Sunday, he said that the future performance of the PTI-led government would be evaluated on the work of PTI local government Nazims.
The chief minister briefed them about the present provincial government's reforms, policies and especially the primary objectives of the devolution of powers under the local government system, adding that even most of the powers of chief executive and the cabinet of the province have been surrendered to the LG system introduced by the provincial government under the reforms agenda of the PTI.
Dispelling the impression that the provincial government did not allow Nazims to exercise their powers of postings and transfers in the devolved district departments, the chief minister said that how he or the cabinet members could delegate those powers which even they did not enjoy.
He, however, ensured that Local Government Rules of Business would be released very soon which would provide foolproof procedures for district governments' functioning as well as exercise of powers and policy guidelines.
He informed that transfers of teachers of the government schools had strictly been banned by the present government and a comprehensive law was under consideration to make the teachers' postings permanent and non-transferable and only through such law the availability of teachers in government schools could be ensured, he added.
He said that the same approach would be adopted in health department to overcome the shortage of doctors and other medical professionals in the public-sector medical facilities of the province whereas political interference has already been eliminated in police department which paved way for its independent operations and decision making.
He said that the local governments would have to work as "B" Team of the provincial government and regularly monitor the working of the devolved department particularly education, health, police and revenue facilities in order to ensure the continuity of the reforms system.
Warning the Nazims, he said that there was a zero tolerance for corruption, deviation from merit, any compromise on standard of civil works and misuse of powers.
The chief minister reiterated that his government was firmly committed to making the reformed system fully functional in an independent manner and that was why most powers of the Chief Minister and his cabinet regarding postings, transfers and management of the public sector institutions had been surrendered to the local governments, adding that a strict monitoring and technology based vigilance mechanism had also been evolved to check activities and performance of the government departments as well as public service facilities.
He further warned that any kind of nepotism and favouritism would ruin the system which was devised by hardworking of the provincial government and PTI leadership. He said that prime purpose of devolution of powers to the local governments was to solve the problems being faced by the common people and ensure the provision of justice and rights to them for which they voted the PTI to power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.