56 companies asked to get NAB clearance

LAHORE: Provincial Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs Raja Basharat has asked all the 56 public sector companies formed by the previous government to get clearance from the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) and other investigation agencies to either continue or stop work in future.

He stated this while chairing a meeting of the Punjab Cabinet Committee on Legislative Business at Civil Secretariat on Wednesday. The meeting was also attended by Provincial Finance Minister Hashim Jawan Bakht and the representatives of other departments concerned.

The meeting was held to review the performance of the 56 companies and take decisions for their future in Punjab. The minister said the representatives of administrative departments should come to the next meeting with complete detail, justifications and logic in favour of each company to reach a conclusion. He directed the secretaries of all the departments concerned to ensure their presence in the next meeting for conclusive decisions. He directed all the administrative departments to fill the vacant posts of board of directors of each company.

Meanwhile, Provincial Minister for Law, Parliamentary Affairs and Local Government and Community Development Raja Basharat issued instructions to all the local governments (LGs) in Punjab to effectively redress the public grievances caused by the current heavy rains. He said that focus should be laid on the areas in the Walled City and suburbs of Lahore with special attention to clear traffic jams. He also advised the local government to remain alert with staff and machinery to handle any possible emergency in the province during expected rains in the coming days.