PESHAWAR, Dec 12: The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa cabinet has approved revival of old local bodies system and the related posts of commissioner, deputy commissioner and executive magistrate.
Briefing media persons about the cabinet meeting here on Wednesday, Information Minister Mian Iftikhar Hussain said that after revival of the old magistracy system the office of district coordination officer would cease to exist.
He said that the post of DCO, provided in the Local Government Ordinance of 2001, was in grade-20, while the deputy commissioners would be in grade-19. He said that divisional commissioner Peshawar would be in grade-21, while other commissioners would be in grade-20.
The information minister said that the revival of the previous system with some minor changes would not be a burden on the national kitty as grade of deputy commissioner was lower than DCO.
Chief Minister Ameer Haider Khan Hoti chaired the cabinet meeting.
Without giving a specific date, Mr Hussain said that a summary would be moved to the chief minister for notification of revival of deputy commissioners.
He said that the cabinet also reviewed the need of assistant commissioners in some districts and decided to set up a committee to prepare a report in this regard. The committee would be chaired by additional chief secretary, while secretary law and secretary administration would be its members.
The cabinet was informed that it had so far held 36 regular meetings in which 496 decisions were taken. Of them, 480 cabinet decisions were implemented while 16 were in process, he said.
The cabinet considered suggestions of the transport department to introduce changes in Provincial Motor Vehicle (Khyber Pakhtunkhwa) Ordinance 1965 for ensuring transparency in fines and other incomes collected by the traffic police. With the amendments in this law, the issuance of driving licences would be shifted from traffic police to the transport department, he said.
He said that prior no-objection certificate from the irrigation department had been made compulsory for any department or individual who wanted to construct flood protection walls and bridges on rainwater courses.
Mr Hussain said that the cabinet condemned attack on a police station in Bannu and bomb blast in Charsadda during the ANP rally.
Regarding fresh threats by Taliban that ANP rallies would be targeted during election campaign, Mr Hussain said that such threats were not new for them. “We don’t care about such threats,” he added.
He said that attacks on ANP leaders and workers by militants had increased popularity of the party among masses. The masses have now realised that the ANP has been fighting for peace, he said.
