Chairman Senate Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani Wednesday strongly advocated the revival of student unions and the establishment of a robust and empowered local government system, describing them as essential for nurturing future leadership and strengthening democracy.
He observed that the nurseries of leadership at the grassroots level had become dormant and needed to be revived to address the leadership vacuum in the country.
Sharing his own political journey, he said he started his career at the local level and rose to become Prime Minister of Pakistan, serving in various constitutional capacities.
He emphasized that strong local governments at district and tehsil levels were vital for good governance, transparency, accountability and effective utilization of public funds.
He expressed these views while addressing a workshop titled “Strengthening Parliamentary Oversight of Public Expenditure Management”, organized by UNICEF.
Chairman Senate emphasized that transparent, efficient and responsible utilization of public resources was a constitutional responsibility of Parliament and essential for maintaining public trust. He said Parliament’s role must extend beyond budget approval to ensuring that national resources were properly utilized and their benefits reached the people.
He stressed that budgetary allocations alone could not guarantee development outcomes unless funds were released timely, institutions fulfilled their responsibilities.
