Daily Times

No federal or provincial minister attended the launching ceremony of the Clean & Green Punjab campaign, which was organised by the district administration at Liaquat Bagh on Monday.

Rawalpindi Deputy Commissioner Dr Umar Jahangir solely launched the Clean & Green Punjab campaign which was initiated in nine divisional headquarters of Punjab as part of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government’s policy for a clean and green country.

No key leaders and ministers of the PTI from Rawalpindi attended the ceremony in order to intensify the cleanliness drive message to the people.

Rawalpindi has three federal ministers including Federal Minister for Health Amir Kiyani, Federal Minister for Petroleum Ghulam Sarwar Khan and Federal Minister for Railway Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed and three provincial ministers including Provincial Minister for Information Fayyazul Hassan Chohan, Minister for Law Raja Basharat and Minister for Literacy & Non-Formal Basic Education Raja Rashid Hafeez.

When contacted, Information Minister Fayyazul Hassan Chohan and Law Minister Raja Basharat said that they were not invited to the event and even if they were invited, it would not have been possible for them to participate as they were in Lahore.

Member of Provincial Assembly Ejaz Khan said, “I am sitting in my office near Liaquat Bagh since morning but I did not receive any invitation/information from the District Administration.”

“I was invited to the event but due to an urgent piece of work, I could not attend the ceremony. However, I will actively participate in the campaign,” MPA Seemabia Tahir said while talking exclusively to Daily Times.

Parks & Horticulture Authority officials planted saplings with name plates of Raja Rashid Hafeez, Seemabia Tahir, Ghulam Sarwar Khan, Wasiq Qayyum Abbasi and other PTI elected members to fill their absence.

PHA Chairman Asif Mahmood, PHA Director General Saif Anwar Jappa, MPAs Umar Tanveer Butt and Farah Agha and students of different educational institutes and civil society members attended the ceremony.

While inaugurating the campaign, Rawalpindi DC Dr Umar Jehangir said, “Everyone should play their role to protect the environment from pollution.”

On the occasion, PHA DG Saif Anwar Jappa said, “More than 35,000 plants have been planted in different areas of Rawalpindi. The PHA will not only provide free plants to citizen but will also guide and plant trees in their residences if they required.”

Later, the deputy commissioner led the Clean & Green Punjab awareness walk from Liaquat Bagh to Gordon College. The awareness walk was attended by school children and a large number of people.

Published in Daily Times, October 9^th 2018.