Implementation of budget rules- 2003 demanded
26 March, 2007
Rawalpindi: Under the Local Government Budget Rules 2003, the draft budget for the year 2007-08 should be ready by the end of March, and it must be presented in the district or town councils in April for debate and the feedback of councilors. However, it seems that, as in the past years, the district and town authorities in Rawalpindi have no intention to full this requirement this year either. In view of this, Centre for Peace and Development Initiatives, Pakistan (CPDI-Pakistan) demands the City District Government Rawalpindi as well as Town Administrations to ensure full implementation of Budget Rules 2003 in the process of preparing the Budget for the Year 2007-08. Last year, the district and town authorities had violated the Budget Rules by not presenting the Draft Budgets in the respective Councils in April 2006. And these would be committing the same violation again if the draft budgets were not presented in the respective Councils in early April 2007. However, violation of Budget Rules would not be tolerated this time, as CPDI-Pakistan plans to take appropriate public mobilization and other initiatives to demand acountability and promote citizens' right to be consulted and be informed about the budgetary proposals. CPDI-Pakistan also demands the City District Government and town administrations to implement Section 114(5) and Section 137 of the Local Government Ordinance 2001, which are about transparency and citizens' right to information. These legal requirements have been largely ignored so far, which is also a matter of serious concern.
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