Govt committed to eradicating corruption, says minister

PESHAWAR: Khyber Pakhtunkhwa’s Caretaker Minister of Information, Tourism, Culture, and Archaeology, Barrister Feroze Jamal Shah Kakakhel on Wednesday reiterated the government’s dedication to improving governance, eradicating corruption, and providing relief to the people.

Speaking at a press conference here, he said that a provincial task force had been established to combat smuggling, specifically focusing on sugar, dollar and gold smuggling.

“The government has resolved to take strict measures against illegal housing societies in the province. Housing societies will not be permitted to operate without obtaining the No Objection Certificate (NOC),” he added.

The caretaker minister said that the Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) had taken steps to prevent the smuggling of foreign currencies, resulting in 519 arrests and 440 FIRs filed.“Cross-border smuggling has been curtailed, leading to a reduction in the dollar’s value, he said.

While commenting on electricity theft in the province, he said that the administrative officers had been tasked to strictly deal with electricity theft resulting in 518 raids conducted, the removal of 1,000 illegal poles, and the recovery of Rs4 million arrears in a short spin of time.

He said that action was taken against foreign exchange operator, with 440 raids, 519 arrests, 44 shops sealed, and 440 FIRs filed. The caretaker minister said that crack downs were ongoing against hoarding and smuggling of essential commodities like wheat, cooking oil, and ghee. “To date, 88,000 sacks of wheat and 90,000 liters of cooking oil and ghee have been confiscated,” he added.

About financial constraints of the province, he said that the province’s NFC share was 19.6 percent, while the federal government was providing only 16 percent. He stressed the importance of settling the Rs1,500 billion arrears owed by the federal government for Net Hydel to solve the financial issues of the province. He stressed the need for greater awareness among the public about such housing societies who lack approval of the provincial government.