General elections will be held before the local body (LB) elections said Sindh Minister for Local Government Agha Siraj Durani. This was decided following settlement of the disputed matter through dialogue with the coalition partners and the nationalists he said. Durani stated this while addressing media at the Durani House Garhiyasin on Sunday. The minister said that the PPP government wanted to improve the socio-economic conditions of the people through introducing the new local government system in accordance with the need of the time and the wishes of the people of Sindh. The District Local Government System had deprived the people of their basic rights because it was introduced to rule over them, not to redress their problems, he added. He said the PPP leadership had tried its best to contact Peer Sahib of Pagara and other coalition partners, and the leaders of nationalist groups to discuss the disputed provisions of the Local Government Bill, which was still not signed by the Governor. However, they were not willing to hold talks in this regard, he said. He invited all the coalition partners and nationalist leaders for settling the matter through dialogue. Replying to a question, Durani said that the Sindh government was formulating a policy for the rehabilitation of rain victims, which would be implemented soon after completion of the survey. Later, he distributed cheques worth a total of Rs 2.7 million among the heirs of nine deceased persons who lost their lives during heavy rains.
