Moonis Elahi objects to LG Bill-2019

LAHORE: Pakistan Muslim League-Q central leader Chaudhry Moonis Elahi, MNA, has raised objections over the recently passed Local Government Bill-2019.

The son of Punjab Assembly speaker Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi used his tweeter handle on Thursday night, alleging that the LG Bill carried “several inherent faults”. Ch Moonis, who’s currently awaiting his turn to take oath as a federal minister, said that “KP (Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa) and Punjab can’t be compared. The difference in size of population is huge. The PTI needs to rethink strategy of copying-and-pasting the KP formula,” said the Junior Chaudhry, who a couple of months ago also indulged in a twitter war with former federal information minister Fawad Chaudhry after the latter remarked that it was not difficult for the government to form a forward bloc in the PML-Q. Moonis said in his tweet that “starting with taking already a significant number of 4,000+ units (union councils) to 24,000+ village councils and panchayats will increase your administrative expenses six times.

“A minimum of Rs8 billion will be wasted on salaries and expenses every year,” added the Chaudhry.

Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) leadership in Punjab Assembly has endorsed the viewpoint of Moonis Elahi on the LG Bill-2019.

Samiullah Khan, the PML-N MPA, told the media outside the Punjab Assembly that the opposition had already been raising voice against the LG Bill-2019, and the viewpoint had also been seconded by the government allies. He said the points raised by Moonis Elahi were valid and carried weight, adding that there was no doubt that it was merely a “copy-and-paste” bill, adopted from the KP.

Samiullah Khan also expressed his astonishment that Moonis Elahi’s father, in clear violation of the rules, had supported the bill. On the other hand, Punjab Law Minister Muhammad Basharat Raja, commenting on the tweet, said it was ‘premature’ to say anything about it, but it was a fact that all allies were taken into confidence over the bill at different stages. He said if the PML-Q had reservations regarding the LG Bill, they could be addressed.

Samiullah Khan, the PML-N MPA, told the media outside the Punjab Assembly that the opposition had already been raising voice against the LG Bill-2019, and the viewpoint had also been seconded by the government allies. He said the points raised by Moonis Elahi were valid and carried weight, adding that there was no doubt that it was merely a “copy-and-paste” bill, adopted from the KP.

Samiullah Khan also expressed his astonishment that Moonis Elahi’s father, in clear violation of the rules, had supported the bill. On the other hand, Punjab Law Minister Muhammad Basharat Raja, commenting on the tweet, said it was ‘premature’ to say anything about it, but it was a fact that all allies were taken into confidence over the bill at different stages. He said if the PML-Q had reservations regarding the LG Bill, they could be addressed.