What’s 2001 minus 1979?: CDGK turns into KMC
District govt coffers sealed, reshuffling ahead, municipal corporations restored.
KARACHI:
Now that the commissioner system is in place, the Sindh government has temporarily blocked the funding for all district governments and has appointed deputy commissioners and commissioners at the divisional and district levels.
This would be the single biggest reshuffle in the bureaucracy since the government came to power in 2008. “All the district governments have been abolished and the municipal corporations in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur have been restored along with district councils in the rest of the districts,” Local Government Secretary Ahmed Ali Lund said. The chief minister would have powers to appoint an administrator in Karachi, who would look after the metropolitan corporation affairs. In other districts, however, the local government department itself would appoint administrators.
The Sindh government departments have issued notifications taking back all those departments that they handed over in 2001.
Now that there are five divisions — Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas and Larkana — the government has made their DCOs the new commissioners. In Karachi, DCO Mohammad Hussein Syed is the new commissioner, in Hyderabad Aftab Khatri, in Mirpurkhas Ghulam Hussain Memon, in Sukkur Inamullah Dharejo and in Larkana Aleem Lashari.
Sources said that there are chances that the commissioners for Karachi and Hyderabad may be transferred soon as they were appointed on the recommendation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which was a coalition partner of the government but is now part of the opposition.
On the other hand, the government had appointed deputy commissioners (DC) for the five districts of Karachi - East, West, South, Central and Malir. Mustafa Jamal Qazi has been appointed DC South, Matanat Ali Khan DC central, Shaukat Jokhio DC East, Jan Muhammad Qazi DC Malir and Ghanhwar Leghari DC West.
The Executive District Officers (Revenue) of Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur and Mirpurkhas have been appointed deputy commissioners. They start work today.
Sources said that government has not only stopped the funds of defunct district governments and town municipal administrations but also the funds for union councils. “About Rs1.8 billion have been allocated in this budget for union councils with each UC getting Rs0.2 million,” said a Saddar Town employee. “But the budget has been blocked. We are worried about our jobs. We do not know what will be the fate of the district government, TMA and UC employee.”
Chief Minister’s Adviser on Planning and Development Kaisar Bengali said, however, all work would continue as before and now supplementary budgets would be presented. “We have already earmarked the budget and now funds would be spent by the provincial governments because all departments have now been handed over to them,” he said.
When asked about the employees of district governments, he said that they would be adjusted into their department and some of them might be kept in the surplus pool. The money would be released.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 12th, 2011.
Now that the commissioner system is in place, the Sindh government has temporarily blocked the funding for all district governments and has appointed deputy commissioners and commissioners at the divisional and district levels.
This would be the single biggest reshuffle in the bureaucracy since the government came to power in 2008. “All the district governments have been abolished and the municipal corporations in Karachi, Hyderabad and Sukkur have been restored along with district councils in the rest of the districts,” Local Government Secretary Ahmed Ali Lund said. The chief minister would have powers to appoint an administrator in Karachi, who would look after the metropolitan corporation affairs. In other districts, however, the local government department itself would appoint administrators.
The Sindh government departments have issued notifications taking back all those departments that they handed over in 2001.
Now that there are five divisions — Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Mirpurkhas and Larkana — the government has made their DCOs the new commissioners. In Karachi, DCO Mohammad Hussein Syed is the new commissioner, in Hyderabad Aftab Khatri, in Mirpurkhas Ghulam Hussain Memon, in Sukkur Inamullah Dharejo and in Larkana Aleem Lashari.
Sources said that there are chances that the commissioners for Karachi and Hyderabad may be transferred soon as they were appointed on the recommendation of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which was a coalition partner of the government but is now part of the opposition.
On the other hand, the government had appointed deputy commissioners (DC) for the five districts of Karachi - East, West, South, Central and Malir. Mustafa Jamal Qazi has been appointed DC South, Matanat Ali Khan DC central, Shaukat Jokhio DC East, Jan Muhammad Qazi DC Malir and Ghanhwar Leghari DC West.
The Executive District Officers (Revenue) of Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur and Mirpurkhas have been appointed deputy commissioners. They start work today.
Sources said that government has not only stopped the funds of defunct district governments and town municipal administrations but also the funds for union councils. “About Rs1.8 billion have been allocated in this budget for union councils with each UC getting Rs0.2 million,” said a Saddar Town employee. “But the budget has been blocked. We are worried about our jobs. We do not know what will be the fate of the district government, TMA and UC employee.”
Chief Minister’s Adviser on Planning and Development Kaisar Bengali said, however, all work would continue as before and now supplementary budgets would be presented. “We have already earmarked the budget and now funds would be spent by the provincial governments because all departments have now been handed over to them,” he said.
When asked about the employees of district governments, he said that they would be adjusted into their department and some of them might be kept in the surplus pool. The money would be released.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 12th, 2011.