Pat on the back: Cabinet hails CM for dengue ‘success’

Punjab govt to seek six-month extension in local election schedule deadline.

LAHORE:

The Punjab government congratulated itself for its performance in handling the dengue crisis at the provincial cabinet meeting on Thursday, declaring that if all situations were met with the same focus and hard work, Pakistan would be a much better place.

The cabinet hailed Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif for his “untiring efforts” to tackle the dengue virus outbreak. It also approved various pieces of legislation, said a press release.

The health secretary briefed the cabinet on the current dengue situation in the province, the measures taken to curb its spread and the treatment facilities at hospitals.

Addressing the meeting, the chief minister said that the whole province but Lahore in particular had been badly affected by the dengue virus, but elected representatives, bureaucrats, experts and departments had worked around the clock and set a “shining example of service to ailing humanity”.

“Had this spirit been displayed during the last 64 years, the country would not be plunged in darkness. The challenges being faced by the country can still be countered if the same passion is demonstrated,” he said.

Sharif praised the chief secretary and his team of officers for their commitment to the dengue challenge. He said that doctors, nurses and paramedics had “proved to be the real messiahs” as they had worked day and night tending to the sick, helping thousands recover from the disease.

He thanked the Sri Lankan and Indonesian medical teams that had advised the government on preventive measures and doctors on treatment measures. He praised Pakistani doctors for “mastering the [treatment of] dengue within a few days”.

He said that the Punjab government had set up a special committee headed by the chief secretary to develop a medium and long-term policy on dengue and other viral diseases.

He said 150 doctors, nurses and technicians were being sent to Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Singapore for training as part of preparations for the outbreak of the seasonal disease next year.

Legislation

The cabinet gave approval to the Ghazi University Dera Ghazi Khan Act of 2011, amendments to the Punjab Local Government Ordinance, the draft Punjab Environmental Protection (Amendment) Act of 2011, and the Punjab Motor Vehicle Transaction Agents Act of 2010, said the press release. The cabinet also approved recommendations on the appointment of members of the Punjab Public Service Commission.

The chief minister said that the Punjab Public Defenders Service Act of 2007 would be abolished as it had failed to provide legal assistance to the poor, but new legislation in this regard would be drawn up.

Granting approval “in principle” to the Punjab Motor Vehicle Transaction Agents Act, 2010, he directed officials to provide him a copy of all the rules in this regard at the next meeting.

Law Minister Rana Sanaullah Khan later said that the cabinet had decided to ask the Election Commission to extend the deadline for setting a date for local bodies elections by six more months as the registration of voters had not been completed.

He said that the police would be removed from the ambit of the Punjab Employees Efficiency, Discipline and Accountability Act and action would be taken against police officials under police laws instead.

He said if PML-Q leaders Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Chaudhry Pervez Elahi visited Raiwind and apologised to Nawaz Sharif, he would ask the party leader to forgive them and let them back into the PML-Nawaz.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 14^th, 2011.