Consensus call grows over new provinces

The debate over the creation of new provinces intensified on Monday as opposition and government figures called for consensus on the sensitive issue, after Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi continued to press his case, despite a categorical rejection of the proposal by the Sindh Assembly.

PTI Chairman Barrister Gohar Ali Khan and Defence Minister Khawaja Asif both stressed that any decision concerning new provinces should be based on consensus, although they differed on aspects of how administrative reforms could be pursued.

Speaking outside the Supreme Court, Gohar warned that dividing Sindh or any other province without the consent of its residents and representatives would weaken the federation and create further complications instead of resolving governance issues.

"If you divide Sindh without the consent of its people and its representatives, you will weaken the federation," he said, urging political forces to avoid rushing into a "sensitive matter". He warned any attempt to carve out provinces from Sindh, Balochistan or Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa without the consent of their residents and representatives could take the country "from one trouble into another".

The PTI chairman called for the issue to be thoroughly deliberated through a commission before being placed before parliament and its elected representatives, saying the process should resemble the consultation that preceded the 18th Amendment.

"Let a consensus be formed first; a commission should be set up on it, and deliberations should be held," he said. "If you make provinces based on reasons unacceptable to the people and on which there is no consensus, you will create further complications instead of solving the issue of good governance."

He also urged political forces not to carry out further "experimental trials" or introduce controversial legislation on the issue, saying the question of new provinces required extensive deliberation and political consensus before any decision.

Defence Minister Khawaja Asif, while speaking to the media at Parliament House, also said the Sindh government had the right to adopt its position on the creation of new provinces, but stressed that "everyone" would ultimately have to accept a consensus decision once one was reached.

Asif suggested that converting the Islamabad Capital Territory into a new province with its own assembly could provide a starting point for the proposed administrative changes. "A number of capitals in the country have this type of system in place. It will be a good thing if this [proposal to create new provinces] is implemented in the first phase from Islamabad," he said.

Asif said the success of such a system in Islamabad could make its implementation in the provinces easier. "In my opinion, it will not be right to adopt an inflexible stance on new provinces," he said, adding that the push for new provinces was not aimed at any particular province but could instead strengthen the federation.

He suggested that the term "new administrative units" could be used instead of provinces, while clarifying that he did not know whether Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had made any progress towards creating new units. Asif also stressed the need for devolution of power to the grassroots, saying resolution of issues and transfer of authority to the people were their rights.

Meanwhile, speaking to a private television channel, Adviser to Prime Minister Rana Sanaullah said the proposal for creating new provinces should be discussed at the relevant forums and taken forward through consensus among political parties.

Sanaullah also referred to proposals for local government elections, saying greater transfer of powers to the grassroots could improve public service delivery and enable local institutions to address citizens' problems more effectively.

The latest debate stems from Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi's July 30 address at the first Pakistan Economic Summit in Islamabad, where he said the country's existing governance system had collapsed and called for fundamental administrative changes, including the creation of new administrative units.

His call for new provinces met strong resistance in Sindh, where the provincial assembly earlier this month passed a unanimous resolution against dividing the province. However, on Saturday, Naqvi reiterated his position at a National Policy Dialogue in Lahore.

He said that neither opposition from a political party nor reservations of a government or individual could settle the matter and that the ultimate decision should rest with the people. He said that his proposal was not aimed at depriving anyone of cultural identity.

However, Sindh Minister Nasir Shah responded to Naqvi, saying administrative reforms were necessary to improve governance and public service delivery but should not be linked to proposals for dividing Sindh or creating new provinces.

The widening debate has now brought together contrasting positions within the political spectrum, with calls for greater administrative devolution and improved governance being accompanied by demands that any change in provincial structure must first secure political and public consensus.