Governor calls for mayor’s empowerment

Sindh Governor Imran Ismail has said the office of the Karachi mayor should be empowered in the best interests of the people of the city.

The governor said this on Friday while talking to media persons at the Karachi Expo Centre after inaugurating the Pakistan Poultry, Dairy and Livestock Expo 2019. The governor expressed his hope that civic issues of Karachi would be resolved soon. To a question regarding the meeting of stakeholders convened by the Sindh chief minister on civic issues of Karachi, Ismail said he had not been approached by anyone regarding this meeting.

He advised the Sindh government to learn from the recently introduced local government system in Punjab for resolving the civic issues of Karachi. The governor was of the view that water problem was the most serious civic issue of the city and all the stakeholders were required to work together to resolve that problem. He added that systems of municipal waste collection and sewage disposal in Karachi had also to be revamped.

The assets’ declaration scheme of the present federal government had been the most successful such scheme ever in the history of Pakistan, he said, adding that the Federal Board of Revenue would do needful action against the people who had availed this scheme as per the law.

He said the incumbent federal government had been extending maximum facilities to people associated with businesses, industries, and livestock and dairy sectors.

First Hajj flight leaves Later in the day, the governor saw intending Hajj pilgrims off when they were leaving for Saudi Arabia from the first Hajj flight from Karachi.

Speaking on the occasion, Ismail appreciated the Hajj services of the Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) which would provide air travelling services to 78,000 Pakistani Hajj pilgrims this year. He also praised the fact that the PIA this year was carrying out Hajj operation from 10 airports of Pakistan.

The governor said special arrangements had been made this year for boarding, lodging, and transportation of the Hajj pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.