Altaf Hamid Rao,
Islamabad/ MIRPUR (AJK), (Parliament Times) : Prime Minister Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan has said that after holding Municipal elections in the region efforts were afoot to transfer power to the local bodies. In his message to the party workers, prime minister Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan congratulated the newly elected local body members for taking the oath of office and expressed the optimism that the newly elected members would realize their responsibilities to fulfill public trust.”Have activated the basic democratic institutions in the state after a gap of 31 years for which we are paying the price”, the PM said adding that the newly elected local body members would play a key role for the functioning of state institutions after taking the oath of office. Local bodies, he said were the effective means of solving the problems being faced by the masses. The PTI government, he said would provide all the resources and powers to the newly elected bodies to strengthen the local system. Holding local elections, he said was the promise the PTI had made during the pre-election campaign. The PM said that he was happy to see that this promise stands fulfilled now. ” It is the duty of the newly elected local body members to identify the problems and give suggestions to the government to solve them”, the PM said adding that the success of Tehreek-e-Insaf in the local elections amply demonstrate that the people were satisfied with the performance of the government. Sardar Tanveer Ilyas Khan further said that all district councils, representatives of Municipal Corporations, Municipal Committees and Town Committees, Union Councils would be empowered so that they can set up their own administration. The government, he said, had also given full representation to the youth, women, laborers and farmers in the local bodies. “The youth constitute 60% of the total population and the majority of them are associated with Tehreek-e-Insaaf”, PM said. He said that the incumbent government was trying its level best to meet the expectations of the youth.Meanwhile, Chief Executive Officer of Qureshi Foundation, Adeel Saeed Mir, along with a delegation called on Prime Minister Sardar Tanvir Ilyas Khan. On the occasion Mr. Mir announced to provide the provision of free medicines to the prisoners in the jails of Azad Kashmir. Hailing the welfare work of the Qureshi Foundation the Prime Minister assured the visiting delegates that the Government of Azad Kashmir would fully cooperate with the Foundation in all possible ways to provide medical facilities to the citizens of the state. He further said that the establishment of a medical university in Azad Kashmir was the top most priority of his government. The establishment of the university he said would open up new vistas of research on diseases and their treatment.