NRB team reviews progress on devolution plan
DAWN: Karachi, July 10, 2000
Karachi, July 10: A team of National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) was briefed on Monday about organizational structure at the provincial, divisional, district and tehsil levels at a high level meeting held on devolution with the consultant NRB Mohammed Naeemul Huq in the chair.
The team was also briefed about functions and performance statistics, details of manpower and career planning, delegation of powers existing as well as those required for proposed district offices were also discussed.
Other issues which came under discussion included vertical and horizontal departmental linkages in the present and proposed setups, application of rules, laws and regulations: problems and solutions particularly incentives for honest officers and better performance besides required adjustments in the proposed political and administrative structure.
On the occasion detailed briefing was given to NRB team by selected departments of the provincial government including district administration, education, health, police, agriculture, livestock and forests, engineering-related departments like public health engineering, housing and physical planning, roads, buildings, highways.
The official sources said the team would also hold discussions with the divisional and district level officers in Hyderabad and Thatta on July 12 and 13.
The Deputy Directors NRB Shahid Siddiqi and Mohammed Feroz Khan, secretary local government board, Rizwan Memon and Chief Administrative Officer Yousuf Gill were also present at the meeting.
MINISTER: The implementation of devolution plan in Sindh came under discussion at another meeting between provincial local government minister, Dewan Muhammed Yusuf Farooqui and member National Reconstruction Bureau, Muhammed Ali Khan at the Sindh Secretariat here on Monday.
The official sources said the process of elections in Sindh with particular reference to reducing the role of money in politics and elections, the minimum educational qualification for candidates, joint or separate electorates came under discussion at the meeting.
Dewan Yusuf Farooqui assured NRB member all help and cooperation in the successful implementation of the plan in Sindh and pointed out that government priority was to ensure a strong structure for the implementation of devolution plan.
He said a defective structure not only collapsed but also brought socio-economic instability in the country.
Muhammad Ali Khan said the minister gave some very good suggestions for raising a strong and stable edifice for the proposed devolution plan.
He said the NRB would soon be convening a meeting of local bodies’ ministers of all the provinces in Islamabad to further elicit their views and suggestions.
The meeting which lasted for over two ours and, among others, attended by additional secretary local government and secretary election commission Sindh.
He said that National reconstruction Bureau would look into the proposals regarding minimum qualification of a candidate.
Dewan Yusuf Farooqui said that Sindh government proposals for a successful district government were based on proper functioning of the system. Its implementation in letter and spirit alone would help achieve the desired goal, he added.
