ISLAMABAD – Every Pakistani now has a voice, really. All one needs is to understand how to have his voice heard.
Since yesterday, Rameez Siddiqi had no idea how to get water supply from Capital Development Authority (CDA) to his house in Islamabad.
“They were not supplying [the] water since last week and when I went to the tubewell they were being supplied water from Simly Dam, it appeared that they were sending it to commercial businesses (instead of homes) who were bribing them,” Siddiqui said. And the area lineman was rude enough to flatly refuse water to the man. “Do whatever you can, no water for you,” Siddiqi was told.
According to an official estimate, almost 40pc of water released from Simly Dam for the capital is being wasted due to leakages.
But Siddiqi, who originally hails from Peshawar, did not lost hope in ‘Naya Pakistan’. He downloaded the Pakistan Citizens’ Portal app on his smartphone and lodged a complaint.
“Within 4 hours, I got a call from the same lineman who told me that he received a reprimand from the DG [of Water and Sanitation Board] for the negligence in duty,” Siddiqi wrote in a Facebook post.
The lineman, who was sickly worried about losing his job, also promised Siddiqi a regular supply of water in future. Besides that, Siddiqi was sent a free tanker by the CDA for water refill.
Siddiqi, who has voted for the incumbent Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) for three elections in five years, says he feels “proud of it now”.
“Thank you Imran Khan. Without having big contacts, I was able to get my issue resolved and that through the Prime Minister Office.”
“First time as a citizen, I felt the Change and that my vote really has power.”
https://en.dailypakistan.com.pk/headline/pm-imran-to-launch-pakistan-citizen-portal-on-sunday/
Complaint portal for citizens
The Pakistan Citizens’ Portal was set up at the Prime Minister Office in October, with an aim to “timely address the problems of the people and get their feedback”.
The portal is available to citizens in the form of a cellphone app, but they can also approach the government via telephone, email or written letters.
Once complaints and suggestions are received, the Prime Minister Office oversees the “process of addressing the public complaints and implementation on recommendations”.
“The system that we’ve developed is a means to change the prevailing mindset. For the first time, government offices and ministries will be accountable,” PM Imran Khan said at the launching ceremony, adding that it would give ordinary Pakistanis, both home and abroad, a voice.
https://twitter.com/ImranKhanPTI/status/1074263010007486465
The complaints portal received some 172,000 complaints in last 47 days, of which 59,000 have been resolved and others are in process. Of these, 29,000 people gave feedback with 57% expressing hundred percent satisfaction.
