Rawalpindi:The bosses of local administration, Rawalpindi have left public in a lurch and failed to take any action against any department over public complaints for over six to eight months. With a set policy, the local administration, Rawalpindi has not been paying heed to media reports that have been continuously pointing out poor performance, corruption, profiteering, hoarding, inflation, lawlessness and corruption of government officials working with different departments.
The local administration, Rawalpindi has also thrown out the directions of Chief Minister Punjab Mohsan Naqvi to resolve public issues on priority basis. Chief Minister Punjab Mohsan Naqvi has given directions of district administration, Rawalpindi in written to resolve all public related issues on priority basis.
The Chief Minister Punjab has given strict directions to local administration, Rawalpindi after receiving public complaints and press clippings. But, all is in vain because all civic bodies as per routine are looting public with both hands along with profiteers and hoarders and lawlessness has touched peak for over six to eight months.
The residents of the city have been facing worst ‘atta crisis’ for over two months. Social media print and electronic media were continuously pointing this problem but local administration seeing the whole drama with closed eyes. The District Food Department (DFD) badly failed to address this issue. The concerned department not only failed to provide fine quality flour to public in cheaper rates but failed to stop wheat smuggling and as a result the residents of Rawalpindi have to buy costly flour than all other cities in the country.
District Food Controller (DFC) Hasan Nazir has admitted all fact and figures but said he could not do anything against it. “I know that dealers and flourmill owners were selling ‘atta’ at skyrocketing prices but we could not do anything,” he claimed.
The bosses of district administration are in complete silence on such kinds of statements. The trend of visiting price magistrates in open market shops to control inflation has ended here in Rawalpindi for over four to six months.
All other cities in the province except ‘Rawalpindi’ established ‘Sasta Bazaars’ in the holy month of Ramazan. But, the residents of Rawalpindi faced recorded inflation, hoarding and black-marketing in the holy month of Ramazan.
The retailers are earning 100 per cent profit on all items but our price magistrates were enjoying in their drawing rooms. The butchers are openly selling 1-kilogram mutton at Rs2000 and beef at Rs1000, the milkmen openly sell 1-liter milk at Rs200 and vegetable sellers were selling all kinds of vegetables in skyrocketing rates but our so-called price magistrates were missing for over three to six months.
The Commissioner Rawalpindi Division had promised to end all kinds of encroachments from all areas in city but encroachment mafia is ruling all roads, streets and even residential areas. The staff of Metropolitan Corporation Rawalpindi (MCR) allegedly demands ‘bribe’ even to issue death and birth certificates.
The local administration has failed to fix the official rates all around resulted profiteers and hoarders looting public according to their wish. Even Naanbhais were selling a ‘Roti’ at Rs20 to Rs25 and ‘Naan’ at Rs25 to Rs30.
The transport authority also failed to issue official ‘Fare List’ and as a result transporters are charging fares according to their wish.
The situation of all other civic bodies of Rawalpindi Development Authority (RDA), Water and Sanitation Agency (Wasa), Parks and Horticultural Authority (PHA), Police, Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE), Rawalpindi Waste and Management Company (RWMC), Education, Civil Defence, Health etc was not different. The officials of all departments were least interested to resolve public related issues.