In their never-ending search for a formula they can agree on for the local government system, the leadership of the Pakistan Peoples Party and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement had another brain-storming session here on Saturday.
During a meeting of the core committee that lasted two hours at Chief Minister House, both coalition partners shared drafts outlining the future of the local government system. They decided to again assemble after Ashura in order to prepare a bill from the drafts so that it could be moved in the Sindh Assembly to become a law.
PPP leaders Pir Mazharul Haq, Agha Siraj Durrani, Ayaz Soomro and Rafique Engineer participated in Saturday’s session. The MQM was represented by Sardar Ahmed, Dr Sagheer Ahmed, Kanwar Naveed Jameel, Wasay Jalil and Wasim Akhtar.
After core committee meeting was over, the leaders of ruling party had separate meetings with a representative of another coalition partner, the PML-F, and handed over the PPP draft copy.
Talking to The Express Tribune, PML-F leader Imtiaz Shaikh confirmed this but said that no one has provided them the MQM proposals yet.
Shaikh said that they will go through the PPP draft and discuss it with their leader, Pir Pagara. “Give us some time to study it. Only then will we be able to comment on it,” he said.
A cursory reading reveals that the PPP draft has most of the features which are present in the 1979 local bodies system, said Imtiaz Shaikh, adding that the PPP has assured them that the commissionerate system will not be rolled back and the PML-F would be taken on board over any new development.
“We are a coalition partner, but the PPP and MQM have ignored us in the decision-making process. I do not know what the secret deal is between them and why they are not inviting us to the core committee meetings,” he said.
He said that the people must know what the PPP and MQM are discussing at the meetings. “It seems like they are hiding something important from us,” Shaikh said, adding that they have once again asked the PPP leaders to invite them to the next meeting so that the public should know what’s happening during its proceedings.
Few details emerged from the MQM, whose leader Wasay Jalil said that it would be hybrid local government system. “We cannot share the details of our draft at this stage. We have mixed and taken some important features from both the local government systems of 1979 and 2001,” he said.
When asked about the commissionerate system, Wasay Jalil said, “We do not want to create controversy over the nomenclature - whether it is EDO (revenue) or commissioner - but we will accept what will be in the interests of Sindh.”
Bashir Jan of the Awami National Party (ANP), another coalition partner, said that the PPP government was not consulting with them either. “We will not accept the government’s decision and oppose it if the bill is moved.” He said that for the last 10 days they were trying to contact the chief minister but he did not have time for them. “Today, we got a call from Chief Minister House to meet the PPP leaders,” said Jan. “But we refused because they have already decided to impose a system on us.” Their party leader, Asfandyar Wali, will meet the president and present their concerns soon, he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 4th, 2011.
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