TRUE to her oft-repeated commitment, new Chief Minister of Punjab, Maryam Nawaz, has started jolting the Administration giving deadlines for implementation of her directives aimed at good governance. On Friday, the CM told newsmen that she has set a timeframe of one month for all local administrations in the entire province to make Punjab neat and clean and remove encroachments on roads and streets, especially in markets, bazaars and road intersections.
No doubt, there are issues and problems that cannot be addressed without necessary planning and allocation of required resources but we have been emphasizing in these columns that most of the problems of the people can be addressed through proper oversight and accountability. Mechanisms do exist for garbage collection and mechanical sweeping of streets and roads but desired results are not seen merely because of shirk-work and lack of sustained vigilance by those who are supposed to do so and as a result billions of rupees are squandered by the so-called waste management companies and civic bodies without due benefits to the citizens. Highly motivated and active people ought to get charge of the waste management bodies, which do not hide behind the lame excuses of shortages of funds for fuel and repair of the waste collection vehicles and have the guts to make the relevant staff work as they should. The initiative of the Chief Minister would not only give a clean look to Punjab but also contribute towards creation of a clean air and healthy environment. However, much depends on the sustainability of the campaign as one-time targets are unlikely to produce the desired results and benefits for the people. Encroachments on streets and roads (by shopkeepers and vendors) are the main cause of traffic congestion, accidents and inconvenience to the general public and, therefore, traffic wardens and local administrations must be warned to ensure their removal on a daily basis along with necessary penalties on violators. One also hopes the CM would also pay attention to the repair and reconstruction of dilapidated streets and roads that have become a nightmare for the residents.
