PPP's top contender, Syed Murad Ali Shah on Thursday overwhelmingly succeeded to retain the chief minister's office for the next five years, vowing to continue the Benazir Income Support Programme for the poor in the province. Murad, secured 97 votes defeating opposition's joint candidate from the GDA, Shehryar Khan Mahar bagging 61 votes, hoped the PTI's federal government will help end water crisis in Sindh to improve irrigation flow and supplies for urban use. Some 158 legislators voted to elect the chief minister.
"I am thankful to Allah Almighty for becoming the chief minister. We will work to improve facilities for women," the CM Sindh told the house, saying that the new government will scale up the coal projects. Unfolding his new government plans, he said that there is still a need to augment agriculture sector of the province.
Besides, the government will exert efforts to increase facilities in the healthcare sector, and expand service s to the other parts of the province to help people find a better assistance. He claimed that the former Sindh government led by the PPP had made efforts to augment agriculture output of all crops and carried out development work in urban centers including Karachi, notably reconstruction of Shahrea Faisal and Tariq Road.
"The federal government should complete the green line project, we will soon bring buses. Work on the coal based projects is under way and soon improvement will appear," Murad said, inviting the opposition to help the new Sindh government for a better province. He asserted that his led government will also step up reforming the police department and increase its performance.
He pledged to set up desalination plants to overcome water crisis the Sindh's rural and urban parts, saying the federal government will sense the province primary issues like water. "The federal government will not be shortsighted towards Sindh and help end water crisis," he said, adding that the last Sindh government struggled to find a solution from the PML-N government for ending water problems but failed.
Earlier, MQM's Khawaja Izhar-ul-Hasan congratulated Syed Murad Ali Shah for becoming the CM Sindh but raised objection to his government. "We have objection to your government," he said and invited the CM Sindh attention to accommodate the opposition's recommendations in legislations. PTI's Shahnawaz Jadoon urged the government to solve water problems of the urban people and improve education.
Syed Abdul Rasheed, MMA's legislator, acknowledged that Murad as the CM Sindh in his almost two-year tenure did a better development work, saying that "no one did justice to the city". He said that Karachi is the largest city with a few facilities available to cater to the people even coming from all of the country should be given a due resources share. "You are now everyone's CM which burdens you with more responsibilities," he said, urging the house to table an adjournment motion against sacrilegious cartoons published in Holland.
PTI's Haleem Adil Shaikh felicitated Murad for becoming CM and assured support from his party's federal government. "We are with you," he said, adding that "nothing from the federal government will be asked for as everything will be at your doorsteps". GDA's Arif Jatoi hoped the CM will step up to end problems the country's important province is faced with.
"He is a wise man," he said, vowing to drive the province to the new developments. MQM's Muhammad Hussain said that the CM Sindh will not solve public problems and called his 'biased' to govern the province. He urged the public in Karachi to stay vigil against Murad policies, as he will not end water and sewerage problems in the city and will give a rise to financial corruption. He also congratulated Murad. The house stand prorogued.