Amid opposition uproar, govt amends Islamabad LG bill

Changes introduced through controversial presidential ordinance were approved by the PML-N led house

ISLAMABAD:

Amid opposition’s uproar, a government bill primarily aimed to give legal cover to the recent local government elections in Islamabad was approved by the lower house of parliament.

The National Assembly on Friday adopted the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Amendment Act, 2016, which provides for an increase in the number of deputy mayor seats in the Islamabad Metropolitan Corporation from one to three.



The original ICT Local Government Act 2015 only allows for one deputy mayor.

The three deputy mayors --- all from the PML-N --- have already been elected and the passage of this bill will give them legal cover.

On February 23, the National Assembly Standing Committee on Interior approved of the bill with a seven-to-six vote. Later it was sent to the house for a vote.



Now, the legislation will be tabled before the opposition-dominated upper house of the Parliament for a vote before final endorsement from the President of Pakistan.

Opposition lawmakers from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) spoke against the bill, alleging that the government is bulldozing unanimously adopted legislation through unilaterally-introduced amendments.

Almost all the opposition members who spoke on the floor of the house questioned the wisdom behind electing three deputy mayors for a city that has a population of around two million.



While opposing the bill, PPP MNA Dr Nafisa Shah said the government was adopting the legislation after the election of the deputy mayors, which she argued was unlawful.

Elections for deputy mayors were held on February 15.

PTI MNA from Islamabad Asad Umar said the PML-N increased the number of seats in a bid to accommodate disgruntled members, referring to rifts in the PML-N ranks at the time of the local government election.

“Can the government give a single example from around the world where a city has three deputy mayors,” Umar said, adding that the move was tantamount to mocking parliament.

PTI MNA Amjad Ali Khan termed the move a “political bribe” to accommodate favourites.

PPP MNA Shazia Marri accused the government of making laws while circumventing parliament. “This bill shows the government does not believe in the parliament,” Marri said.

While calling criticism terming it “undue”, the state minister Balighur Rehman said the government should be given credit for holding local government elections in Islamabad for the first time in the city’s history.

“There always exists room for improvement in any legislation. The bill has been tabled before the house after approval from the concerned National Assembly committee,” Rehman said.



He said seats had been enhanced while keeping in view the population of the capital and strong rural-urban divide in Islamabad. He said the introduction of changes through a presidential ordinance was an acceptable and lawful parliamentary norm.

In response, MQM MNA Syed Asif Hasnain said Karachi was the largest city of Pakistan but only has one deputy mayor. “If [the government] wants special treatment for Islamabad, it should be given the status of a province, similar to [New Delhi, India],” while asking if the government would install three deputy prime ministers, keeping in view the population of Pakistan.

JI MNA Sher Akbar Khan also criticised the bill.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 27^th, 2016.