Hazara province vote

The Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly's unanimous passage of a resolution demanding the creation of a Hazara province marks the formalisation of a longstanding demand of people from the area, which has a cultural and linguistic identity unique from the rest of K-P. But while the resolution certainly reflects the aspirations of the people of the Hazara belt, the move also raises serious questions about political sincerity and constitutional propriety.

To start with, the Constitution is clear: the creation of a new province is a federal matter, requiring a constitutional amendment initiated in the National Assembly under Article 239. PTI could have presented a resolution in the National Assembly and forced the PMLN-led government to either table it or paint them as anti-Hazara. But - if the move is only about optics - this could have backfired if the government supported the move.

The PTI's political stunt is hardly new. In 2012, when the PML-N was in the opposition in Islamabad, it submitted its own resolution in the National Assembly calling for the creation of four new provinces, including Hazara. That move was also widely seen as political positioning rather than a genuine push for reform. After all, the PMLN-led federal governments that have ruled for seven of the 13 years since then have not made any serious mention of new provinces, even after it became a major factor in the 2018 elections. History is thus repeating itself, with opposition parties trying to undercut the federal government with the use of an emotive issue, even though they made no effort to pursue the same goals when they actually had the power to do so.

Moreover, if the mentioned moves for new provinces are genuinely rooted in intentions for public service, why have the elected representatives, in general, thus far obstructed attempts for a functional local government set-up which can ensure service delivery at the people's doorsteps?