Civil society’s help needed to make KP role model of good governance: Khattak

Reiterates commitment to eradicate corruption

PESHAWAR: Chief Minister Pervez Khattak has reiterated his government’s commitment to eradicate corruption from society and ensure accountability and good governance.

Speaking as chief guest at a seminar on “Role of Civil Society in Fight Against Corruption” at Khyber Pakhtunkhwa National Accountability Bureau (NAB) here on Tuesday, the chief minister said it was very unfortunate that our society had developed a certain level of tolerance for corruption.

He urged the anti-corruption agencies and institutions as well as the civil society to support the government in making Khyber Pakhtunkhwa a role model of good governance.

The chief minister ordered the finance authorities of the province to immediately submit the case of monetisation of the official transport and residential facilities available to the government servant, which will enhance salaries of the civil servant by threefold and also help control corrupt practices.

He, however, added that his government believed that society must develop zero tolerance for corruption. The seminar was arranged by NAB, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Minister for Public Health Engineering Shah Farman, Professor Dr Abdul Mateen, Bushra Farrukh, Advisor to the Federal Ombudsman and former chief secretary Ijaz Ahmad Qureshi and provincial head of NAB, Shahzad Saleem also spoke on the occasion.

Ministers Syed Muzaffar Said, Muhammad Atif, Special Assistant to Chief Minister Mushtaq Ahmad Ghani, officers of NAB and the provincial Anti-Corruption Establishment, experts from academia, legal services and officers of the provincial government also attended the seminar.

The chief minister said that the KP government had taken numerous steps for eliminating corrupt practices and making governance system transparent and responsible. The measures included enactment of Right to Information Act, Right to Service Act, establishment of Ehtesab Commission and KP procurement Regulatory Authority, he added.

He said these establishments not only started functioning but also provided checks and balances at every level of governance and achieving the cherished goal set by the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf for making the province free from all sorts of corruption.

The chief minister added that the “Whistle Blower Act” and “Conflict of Interest Act” were in the pipeline which, on enactment, would also help the government check the misuse of powers and misappropriation of exchequer.

Pervez Khattak maintained that his government and NAB established various Prevention Committees to study rules and regulations, identify grey areas and suggest amendments in laws to make government organisations more responsible, people friendly and service oriented.

Appreciating the performance of NAB Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for recovering huge amount of looted public money and arresting a number of corrupt elements, the chief minister hoped that NAB together with the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Ehtesab Commission will work towards eradication of the menace of corruption from our society.