Reforms yielding results: CM

NOWSHERA: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak on Saturday said that the reforms of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI)-led Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government introduced in government departments were yielding results.

Speaking at a public meeting in Dagai, he said that to provide basic facilities and rights to people was the prime responsibility of a government but successive governments did not fulfill this duty.

He said that education, health and upholding merit in fresh recruitments in government departments had never been on the agenda of the money-making politicians.

He said the people had voted for the PTI to bring about a change as the successive rulers had disappointed them.

The PTI promoted awareness among the people and made them realised that the problems cannot be solved sans bringing transparency in the system.

“The difference between the PTI and other status quo political parties is that it is striving to protect the rights of the poor people. And the corrupt elite and traditional politicians are protecting their vested interests,” he went on to say.

The chief minister said the reforms introduced by the provincial government were paying off and the change the PTI-led KP government had brought in the government departments was visible.

The provincial government presented itself for accountability and made the system transparent, he said, adding progress could not be made without making the system transparent.

Pervez Khattak said the provincial government eliminated corruption, upheld merit in government departments and introduced uniform education system.

He said the government spent Rs35 billion to provide missing facilities in 20,000 state-run primary schools, adding schools were also being solarised to ensure uninterrupted power supply.

Apart from this, the chief minister said, that 50,000 qualified teachers were employed to improve the standard of education in government schools.

He said that Rs3 billion were being spent to purchase equipment for public sector hospitals in the province.

INP adds: Talking to a delegation of Islamabad-based journalists in Peshawar on Saturday, the chief minister said that his government was endeavoring to bring the youth on key and leading positions of affairs in all walks of life rather than keeping them dependent on certain government jobs.

About defeat in the recent by polls in Lodhran, he said by-poll is no scale for examining popularity of a political party.

About the March 3 Senate elections, the chief minister said that horse trading will not be allowed in the election. He said other political parties are only claiming and the PTI has completed its homework. He said that PTI would succeed in electing its six candidates.

He added that they would also get Mualana Samiul Haq elected to the Senate.

The chief minister said he has written a letter to the Election Commission of Pakistan to hold Senate polls through show of hand instead of secret ballot so that horse trading could be checked.

About the claim of billion trees plantation, he said those who have any doubt about it should select the site and we would show them the trees planted according to the scheme.