Punjab: Delay in uplift wasted billions: Shahbaz

[Naveed Yaseen]

Punjab Chief Minister Mian Shahbaz Sharif has said that billions of rupees of the people were wasted due to delay in the development projects during the last eight years and not a single scheme was completed under the Annual Development Program.

The CM stated this while addressing a high level meeting held to review the implementation of the development projects in the province at Chief Minister’s Secretariat, here on Thursday

MPAs Saeed Akber Niwani, Abul Razzaq Dhillon, Javed Iqbal Awan, Iftikhar Baloch, the C & W secretary, the P & D secretary besides senior officers of the Communication Department were also present on the occasion.

The meeting reviewed in detail all development projects delayed throughout the province. The chief minister said the resources were looted ruthlessly in the name of development projects during the tenure of previous government and it was done in connivance with the department concerned and contractors. He said the delay was also due to the wrong policies of the government. The development projects were not completed in time and the government was bearing huge additional amounts, he said adding people were also facing problems.

Speaking on the occasion, he said that we had ensured third party audit system for the transparency of the development projects during the last tenure but later, this system had been abolished. He said that new formal legislation would be made in that regard and third party audit system would be compulsory for all the development schemes.

The chief minister directed the constitution of five teams headed by MPAs for reviewing all the delayed development projects and submit their reports within seven days after ascertaining the reasons of delay and other aspects in the projects.

He said that C&W department should scrutinize all contractors participating in construction work and the contract should be given to only contractors of good repute. He said that we should learn a lesson from the mistakes of the past and those contractors should not be given any development project in future who had not completed their development projects.

He said no compromise should be made on the quality of work of development projects and proper utilization of each penny of the people will be ensured. He said that embezzlement and dishonesty in the development projects could be judged from the construction of Lahore-Kasur Road which was still incomplete.

He said that 14 thousand trees were cut during the construction of this project and there was no record of it. He said the officers of communication department made payments to the contractors in advance in collusion with them before completion of the project. He said that all possible steps were being taken for completion of development projects in a transparent manner within the stipulated period. He said that prequalification of all contractors should be carried out before giving development projects and the work should be given only those contractors who completed the projects in time and ensured the quality of work. He said that the looters of the national exchequer should not be given development projects at all.

Mian Shahbaz Sharif said that the committees headed by MPAs would review the projects delayed on the spot and submit their reports within seven days by identifying the persons responsible. He said that the department should also constitute five committees comprising honest and hardworking retired officers who would conduct third party audit of development projects and it would also reduce pressure of work on NESPAK.

He said that in future, while awarding contract, it would be made mandatory for contractors to carry out maximum work during night also to complete the projects in time. Taking notice of slow pace of work of Faisalabad-Samundary Road, the chief minister also formed a committee which would submit its report within seven days. He said that gold medals and commendatory certificates would be awarded to the officers of the Communication and Works Department who would play an important role in the timely completion of developmental projects.

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