CM Sindh Murad says federal govt not serious in running constitutional bodies

KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has said that the federal government was not serious in running the constitutional bodies which was evident from the fact that the prime minister left National Economic Council (NEC) meeting without getting the PSDP approved and the next day the national media carried the news that the PSDP was approved.

This he said on Thursday while addressing a press conference here at Committee room of Old Assembly Building. He was flanked by Sindh PPP President Nisar Khuhro, Minister Excise Mukesh Kumar Chawla, Advisor on Information Murtaza Wahab and Advisor on Jails Aijaz Jakharni.

The chief Minister said that the NEC was a 13-member constitutional body headed by the prime minister and constitutionally it has to meet twice in a year. It was first meeting of the year and the next meeting has to be convened.

Mr Shah said that the federal government presented a five-year plan in the NEC meeting and with its presentation the prime minister loudly said approved. “At this I told him that neither the plan has been shared with the province and nor comments or suggestions have been heard in the meeting how it could be approved,” he said and added that how the national issues were being handled at the federal level.

Mr Shah recalled that he had written a letter to the prime minister with the request to directed NHA to expedite work on Rs14 billion dualization of Jasmhoro-Sehwan road for which provincial government has already released its Rs7 billion share to NHA. The prime minister directed his state Minister Murad Saeed to settle the issue. When Murad Saeed came to Karachi he told me to meet him in Governor’s House. “I told him to come to the CM House but he did not bother to visit CM House and then he was promoted as full-fledged minister, he surprised.

Talking about Karachi Circular Railways, the chief minister said that the railways authority has given undertaking to the Supreme Court that they would start local train within 15 days. Contrary to it the railways minister was saying that the Sindh government would operate the local train. “The railway is a federal subject and in the past it was the railways ministry which used to operate local train in the city,” he recalled and questioned that the provincial government has bogies and engines how it would operate local train.