Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif on Sunday warned that substandard performance and negligence in governance would not be tolerated.
She issued the directive while presiding over a high-level meeting convened to review the key performance indicators (KPIs) of Deputy Commissioners across the province. She directed that supervision of cleanliness, municipal services and district administration be further tightened, adding that secret monitoring teams would be deployed to every district to ensure the highest standards of service delivery. The Punjab government, she said, had already warned of strict action against private contractors of the Clean Punjab programme found guilty of poor performance.
Expressing strong dissatisfaction over unsatisfactory cleanliness conditions in several cities, the Chief Minister ordered the immediate suspension of payments to delinquent Clean Punjab contractors and directed authorities to review their contracts due to substandard work. She also issued notices to relevant officers for failing to prevent incidents of stray dog bites and fatalities caused by falling into open manholes, and strongly reprimanded the Deputy Commissioners concerned.
CM Maryam Nawaz took serious notice of incomplete provision of free medicines in some government hospitals and instructed authorities to ensure the availability of essential medicines without exception. To improve sanitation systems, she ordered immediate cleaning of garbage bins, construction of proper waste enclosures in every city, and the building of protective boundary walls around them. She said garbage bins should be washed daily, warning that negligence in cleanliness would not be tolerated. She further directed that parking areas, bus stands, and all public places be maintained with exemplary cleanliness. The Chief Minister said 24/7 monitoring through CCTV cameras would be carried out to eliminate encroachments, noting that all illegal constructions and occupations would now be digitally recorded.
She directed district administrations to promptly remove roadside carts that obstruct movement and obtain written undertakings from market committees to ensure compliance. She also ordered immediate and strict action against violators, including arrests where required. The Chief Minister emphasised transforming the urban environment to make it clean, pleasant and safe, directing authorities to clear and beautify entry and exit routes of every city and establish green belts on priority. She termed the maintenance of electric buses essential and directed the urgent repair of dangerous electric wires in markets, issuing strict instructions to the concerned electricity companies.
Maryam Nawaz Sharif ordered all city roads to be marked with lanes and directed Assistant Commissioners to remain in the field to monitor cleanliness. She instructed Deputy Commissioners to form vigilance teams for improved governance and to take steps for the reuse of ablution water from mosques for tree plantation. She also directed authorities to fix broken manhole covers, ensure functional streetlights in private housing societies, maintain water filtration plants, and ensure constant cleanliness of public toilets. She approved imposing fines on housing societies that fail to follow government directives. She further declared charging stations mandatory at new petrol pumps, and ordered all petrol pumps on highways to maintain clean and fully functional washrooms. She also directed repair of green belts and regular plantation and grassing activities in all big and small cities. She reiterated that weddings must end by 10 pm and the one-dish policy strictly enforced. District heads consistently showing poor performance would be replaced, she warned, adding that a Deputy Commissioner would be removed upon the third warning after two prior notices. She said it was regrettable that desired results were not being achieved despite provision of ample funds.
The Chief Minister said there was no room for error in public service and that next-level governance was required in every sector of Punjab. She said the administration must be empowered with full authority, financial resources and trust to achieve 100 percent results. While acknowledging that Punjab performs better than other provinces in governance, she said she remained dissatisfied with the existing standards. She noted that despite machinery worth Rs 40-50 billion and a workforce of 150,000 sanitation workers, the presence of garbage heaps was unacceptable. She added that Deputy Commissioners had performed commendably in matters related to Afghan repatriation and other issues, but governance standards must rise further.
Maryam Nawaz highlighted that cutting even a tree branch is considered a crime in countries like Brazil and directed that footpaths be constructed up to shop entrances in all markets to prevent dust and dirt. She said broken footpaths and lack of fresh paint spoil the appearance of cities. The Chief Minister said she was taking real-time feedback from all districts through social media and other means, adding that she had enhanced the authority and facilities of Deputy Commissioners even at the cost of displeasing political figures, and insisted that citizens’ homes must be kept clean with the same care as one’s own household.