KHYBER
Due to unavailability of power, funds and other incentives large number of village and neighborhood chairmen and councilors have discouraged and inattentive in their legal responsibilities in tehsil office due to ignorance of the provincial government.
According to the tehsil chairman office out of 36 VCs and NCs heads in Landi Kotal only 10 to 12 are available to verify necessary legal documents for the residents.
It is to be mentioned here that following election of councilors under local bodies’ structure, the VCs and NCs chairmen were officially authorized to verify essential documents of their council’s residents including death and birth and marriage certificates, identity card, domicile certificate, farm-B, police and for job clearance certificates etc.
Suhail Ladla, a xerox machine runner in the tehsil premises and elected chairman from VC 09 said that he had contested the election with spirit to serve the people but ironically the ignoring attitude of government restricted them to work for the welfare of people.
Subsequently with the least expectation for supply of funds and other incentives, he preferred to resume his old job (photo state machine runner) to keep his kitchen functional.
Deputy Chairmen tehsil Landi Kotal Wali Muhammad Shinwari said that it was irony of the time that with passage of two years that they had been elected, office was unavailable for them and they had a small room in the office of Tehsil Municipal Authority, Landi Kotal to serve their electorates.
Majority councilors of the tehsil are ready to tender their resignations, he maintained.
Because of a lack of privileges, a number of council’s chairmen were permanently absent from their duties and preferred to engage themselves in personal jobs to earn three times meals for their families, he remarked.
He went on that 12 female chairpersons in councils had also been elected in the local bodies’ election to facilitate the women folk however due to short of their interests they had not even attended the tehsil council meeting.
For the last two besides representatives of LBs of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, they protested for provision of power and funds but to in avail, he added and said with consultation they would formulate future strategy for them.
Tasleema Bibi from VC-7 Shiekhmal Khel said that she took part in the local bodies election in spirit to represent women folk in the development process and to encourage the tribal women, the most neglected portion of the society, to seek for their rights.
But ironically, no development schemes and funds especially for females had not been approved to materialize the promises she made during her election.
She went on beside negligence from the government; she would contest the election to represent the poor ones in future to win their rights for them.
The share of local government is 20 percent of the total provincial Annual Development Programme(ADP).
As per legal expert through the amendment of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa local government Act, 2013, the former PTI government deleted section 30(2)(b)of the law that was dealing with financial resources of the local bodies.
When Assistant Director, local government, Khyber Mr Waqas was contacted on the matter he said that the government intended to provide all facilities to the councilors and for the purpose they had already sent their demands to the concerned departments.
He maintained that funds had been approved and in near future, office rent, honorary and other incentives besides development funds would be supplied to the councilors.
