Daily Times

Minister for Planning, Development and Special Initiatives Asad Umar Sunday criticized the Sindh government for “looking to disempower local bodies”.

Addressing a press conference in Karachi, Asad Umar said the local government law in Sindh was “unconstitutional, incomplete democracy and threat to Pakistan”.

He said the federal government had filed a petition against the amended local government bill passed by the Sindh Assembly adding that the provincial government “seeks to endanger Pakistan”.

The minister said 18th Amendment to the Constitution had greatly enhanced powers of all the provinces.

He noted that the PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s sister had remarked earlier that the province was barred from buying vaccinations under the law, says a news report.

“What law is it that prevents the Sindh government from buying vaccines for its citizens?” Umar asked.

“If there is such a law, let us know and we will change it,” he added.

The minister said the centre wanted all provinces to “fulfill their responsibilities”.

Speaking of production and distribution of wheat in Sindh, he said investigations by the National Accountability Bureau showed Rs20 billion worth of theft of wheat crop.

“And they say that rats ate it up,” the minister said, adding, “I don’t know if these were human rats or what.”

He said in Sindh the price of wheat flour is higher than that in Punjab.

Meanwhile, reacting to Asad Umar’s press conference, Minister for Information Sindh Saeed Ghani said it was a PPP minister who first noted that wheat theft had occurred.

“It was the Sindh government that wrote to NAB, asking to investigate,” he said.

Ghani alleged that wheat theft occurred in the tenure of an individual for whom Imran Khan was chief polling agent.

“The Sindh government caught all those rats involved in the theft of wheat,” he added.

The provincial information minister said “one rat ate up Rs40 billion from the corona fund”, and the same rat “stole Rs600 billion of the nation’s wealth during the purchase of LNG”. “Other rats caused a sugar and wheat shortage in the country,” Ghani said.