LAHORE
The Punjab government’s Civil Administration Ordinance 2016 is against the spirit of democracy and violates Article 140-A of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan.
This was stated by Pakistan Awami Tehreek chairman Dr Tahirul Qadri while addressing senior party members via video call from abroad here on Monday.
The PAT chief said the Constitution speaks of strengthening the mayors, deputy mayors and chairmen of the Local Governments (LGs) while this ordinance has snatched their powers and handed them over to the government officials and deputy commissioners. He questioned what sort of democracy is this where the throats of the elected members are in the hands of the government officials.
He said that instead of firing in the air after winning the elections these representatives should be worried about getting the powers back which have been snatched through an ordinance in the darkness of the night. He said if these powers were not restored all these elected representatives would be left to do was arrange visits of the chief minister and ministers and get the roads swept before these dignitaries visits.
Dr Tahirul Qadri said what could be a bigger insult for elected representatives that they would be answerable to the government officials and not the public who voted for them. He said if all the powers had been vested in DCs then what was the need of mayors and chairmen. He said the rulers were implementing the laws framed by the Britain to ruthlessly rule the people of the sub-continent. He said PAT desired strong Local Government institutions in all the four provinces but this move of the Punjab government was in the wrong direction and would not help the public representatives.