Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi. PHOTO: FILE
ISLAMABAD: Coming good on one of its key election promises after more than one and half years in power, the ruling PTI announced on Wednesday that the government would soon table a bill in the National Assembly for the creation of a South Punjab province.
“This is in line with the PTI’s manifesto,” Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi, whose constituency falls in the southern Punjab city of Multan, said while making the announcement at a press briefing.
The minister said the decision was made during a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Imran Khan earlier in the day and hoped that other political parties would support in the passage of the bill with a two-thirds majority.
Qureshi noted that the lack of clear majority in parliament by any party had remained the biggest obstacle to the creation of a South Punjab province. “Only the PML-N had that at one time but it didn’t do it,” he added. "Right now, no party has a two-thirds majority in parliament.”
The minister hoped that the PPP would back the bill considering that it had repeatedly endorsed the demand in the past.
He pointed out slain PPP chairperson and former premier Benazir Bhutto had backed the call for a South Punjab province and the party’s incumbent chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was also in its favour.
“I also hope that PML-N legislators will convince their leadership to support the bill,” he said. “PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif has spoken about giving rights to South Punjab in the past.”
Qureshi said in line with the policy to devolve power and facilitate the people, the government had decided to set up a secretariat in South Punjab.
He explained that an amount of Rs3.5 billion would be required for the new secretariat and 1,350 employees needed to fill the new positions there.
“An additional chief secretary and an additional inspector general of police will be appointed for South Punjab,” he said, adding that one of them would have their headquarters in Multan and the other in Bahawalpur.
South Punjab province to be established in 2019: FM Qureshi
The minister elaborated that during the meeting earlier in the day, the Punjab chief minister had said 35% resources would be allocated to southern belt in the upcoming budget keeping the population ratio in mind.
“In the past, funds were promised for southern Punjab but measures were taken in letter and spirit,” he added.
Qureshi said after the province’s creation, it would also be given its due share in the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.
On the contentious issue of whether the capital of the new province would be Multan or Bahawalpur, the minister said it would be decided after holding consultations with the stakeholders.
The meeting chaired by PM Imran on the issue was attended by Qureshi, Punjab Chief Minister Usman Buzdar, Jahangir Khan Tareen, Minister for National Food Security Khusro Bakhtiar, Minister of State Shabbir Ali Qureshi, Syed Fakhar Imam, Special Assistant to PM on Information and Broadcasting Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan, provincial ministers, MNAs and MPAs belonging to southern Punjab and the province’s chief secretary and the police chief.
The PM’s aide on information, who was present alongside Qureshi at the press briefing, said the prime minister and the PTI leadership realised the problems faced by the people of South Punjab and steps were being taken to address them.
In January this year, Qureshi had announced that a separate secretariat and a public service commission would be established for the proposed South Punjab province in the ongoing financial year.
(With additional input from APP)
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