FAISALABAD, Feb 3: Elaborate arrangements have been made for a comprehensive audit of all local bodies from tehsil to district level since the inception of existing local council system.
This was stated by Additional Auditor General of Pakistan Mrs Noorul Ameen Haider while speaking to participants of a meeting with elected representatives and officials concerned here.
She said the director general audit would supervise audit teams in Punjab while eight regional directors would conduct audit of local councils. Some 64 other audit officers, she said, would assist them in tracing ambiguities, mal practices and misuse of power and violation of rules in running the affairs of the institutions.
Mrs Haider said that due to the paucity of time it would not be possible for the authorities concerned to conduct brief audit of all UCs adding that UCs were released limited funds by the zila and tehsil councils. In any case, she said that a simple audit process would be completed for this important tier of local bodies.
She revealed that owing to snail pace of work of zila councils and lack of capabilities, most of the zila councils could not utilize huge funds for development with the participation of community depriving civil society the real fruits of development.
In Faisalabad alone, she said just three per cent funds out of Rs227 million allocated under the Citizens Community Boards could be utilized. Mrs Haider claimed that the Auditor General of Pakistan was playing the role of a bridge among the governments of districts, provincial and federal for implementing devolution of power plan at the grass root level.
A number of recommendations and suggestions, she further claimed, had been sought from the local councils for their scrutiny and audit which were being given due consideration in the audit process.
She stressed the need to enhance the social empowerment at the grass root level so that the people could decide on their own for the uplift and modernization of their localities.
The representatives of the TMAs, district governments and UCs assured the AAGP for conducting audit of their bodies through the audit general office. The meeting was also briefed about the uplift projects being carried out in their respective areas from the funds of CCBs.
FLOUR BAGS: At least 157,174 flour bags were distributed among the people under the Chief Minister's sasta atta scheme in Faisalabad district during the month of January.
A spokesman of the Faisalabad Flour Mills Association said the Punjab chief minister had directed to supply maximum number of flour bags among the poor at subsidized rates. All out efforts were being made for this task and 93 per cent bags had already been supplied.
He said that 840 fair price shops had been set up in the district where flour bags were being provided at subsidized rates. Flour bags were also being provided to consumers at fair prices shops outside flour mills. Special teams of the FFMA under the supervision of the district administration were checking the fair price shops, he added.
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