Punjab Minister for Information and Culture Azma Bokhari has strongly responded to Muzzammil Aslam’s recent remarks against Punjab, saying that those who fail to manage their own provinces are the first to criticize Punjab.
In a statement on Friday, she said terrorism, corruption, lawlessness, and bad governance have become routine in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, yet no one speaks about it. “Two ministers of the KP cabinet resigned after exposing the Chief Minister’s corruption, and still they dare to point fingers at Punjab,” she remarked.
Bokhari questioned whether the KP government has provided any relief to the thousands affected by floods in Buner, Swabi, and Swat. “Your Chief Minister writes letters to the federal government every month begging for funds, while your spokespersons are busy hurling baseless accusations at Punjab. You cannot hide the truth with empty bragging like Sheikh Chilli,” she said.
The minister made it clear that Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz would never seek loans or aid in the name of flood victims. “Those who are used to living off donations and relief funds assume everyone else does the same. But Maryam Nawaz, the daughter of a self-reliant leader, will never stretch out her hand before anyone,” she asserted.
Azma Bokhari informed that 1,857 survey teams are working across 27 districts of Punjab to collect detailed data on flood-affected individuals, farmers, homes, crops, and livestock. “Punjab has not seen just 10 or 20 victims – more than 4.5 million people have been affected. This comprehensive survey will be completed within a month,” she explained.
She added that CM Maryam Nawaz would personally ensure that every flood-affected person receives relief without reliance on provincial resources. “The Punjab government is taking serious, organized, and rapid measures for rehabilitation. These are not mere statements, they are ground realities,” Bokhari concluded.
Data of 81,510 victims collected
The largest flood survey in the history of Punjab has been released on the instructions of Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif here on Friday.
According to a document of the Punjab Disaster Management Authority (PDMA) , 1857 teams participated in collecting data in 27 flood-affected districts, and details of 81510 victims have been collected in the flood survey.
PDMA document reveals that the survey teams have checked with 56207 farmers in different districts about crop losses. So far, the survey teams have identified 53985 acres of flood-affected land, and data of 24246 flood-affected houses has been collected.
Details were also taken from 1057 people who lost their livestock, details of 3945 dead livestock were received from different districts according to the survey, representatives of Urban Unit, Revenue, Agriculture Department, Livestock and Pakistan Army are conducting house-to-house surveys.
Meanwhile, DG PDMA Irfan Ali Kathia said in a statement that PDMA Punjab is reviewing the progress of the survey on a daily basis.
According to the PDMA document, survey teams are also visiting the affected villages with the help of boats. The data of the victims is being ensured by wading through standing floodwaters. The district administration and relevant institutions are also working day and night for transparency.