DMCs’ chairmen demand they, not DCs, be provided funds

Criticising the Sindh government for not providing any funds to the District Municipal Corporations (DMCs) for the cleanliness campaign, DMC East Chairman Moeed Anwar on Sunday said the government should officially announce that the DMCs have no role to play in the cleanliness drive and only the deputy commissioners (DCs), who have been provided funds by the government, are responsible for it.

Talking to The News, Anwar said funds for the ‘Clean My Karachi’ campaign were only provided to the DCs who were managing the machinery and monitoring the waste collection work. The DMC East chairman lamented that the elected representatives of people were being ignored while the administration was being empowered to carry out development work.

He said this reminded him of the past when bureaucracy enjoyed more powers than elected representatives. He added that the Sindh government wanted to bring that era back. Commenting on the statement of Federal Maritime Affairs Minister Ali Zaidi who said Kachra Kundis in Karachi were being handed over to contractors, Anwar said the federal minister was right.

Meanwhile, DMC West Chairman Izharul Hasan said the deputy commissioner in his district had been provided funds to lift garbage and debris and the elected chairman was there just as a silent spectator. Decrying the Sindh government’s attitude of ignoring the elected chairmen of the DMCs, he said it was due to such attitude the local bodies were compelled to ask for the federal government’s help.

DMC Central Chairman Rehan Hashmi also echoed the concerns of his counterparts in District East and West. He said he needed funds to deal with the rain emergency but the Sindh government was not providing him any money for that.

Hashmi was of the view that being elected representatives, the DMC chairmen were accountable to their voters while the voters were not to hold the DCs accountable for their job, due to which the cleanliness drive should be managed by the DMC chairmen rather than the DCs.