South Punjab: President forms committee to push for one new province
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) will press ahead on the issue of new provinces – but is looking to create just one new unit in south Punjab for the time being, as opposed to the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)’s move to propose two.
However, whether it will be a ‘Seraiki’ province or ‘Bahawalpur’ is still undecided.
President Asif Ali Zardari has given a go-ahead to the party to draft legislation on the formation of a south Punjab and has constituted a high-level committee, which has to submit its recommendations in three months, sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune.
In a meeting at the President House on Monday between President Zardari and parliamentarians from south Punjab, a number of key proposals and some decisions were made on a new province. The proposals will be weighed at meetings of the new committee.
The committee will operate under the supervision of federal minister Makhdoom Shahabuddin, and members Senator Sughra Imam and Minister for Religious Affairs Syed Khurshid Shah will finalise the recommendations.
The mandate
According to details, the committee, among other things, will ponder over the new south Punjab province, and its name.
There is one particularly interesting proposal.
There are two main schools of thoughts – one supporting a linguistic-based ‘Seraiki’ province and the other an administrative-based Bahawalpur province – but the PPP has decided to create just one new unit. Therefore, the party will look to pacify the ones whose idea does not materialise.
How will the PPP do this?
If the party goes ahead with a ‘Seraiki’ province, the provincial headquarters will be Bahawalpur city – and if it goes ahead with Bahawalpur province, then the capital will be Multan.
In the preliminary stage, industrial zones will be established between Multan and Bahawalpur and later expanded into three zones.
Composition
According to ambitious proposals, aside from the 11 districts of three divisions, Multan, Dera Ghazi Khan and Bahawalpur, the new province would also look to carve out Bhakkar, Mianwali and Jhang.
Pakpattan, which is one district of Sahiwal division, would also be included. President Zardari wanted the entire Sahiwal division but some of his party members belonging to the area advised him against this. The committee will decide on this matter now.
The next step
According to sources, President Zardari said that recommendations of the party committee would be forwarded to the Parliamentary Committee on Constitutional Reforms (PCCR), which would draft the bill of a 21st Amendment for the formation of South Punjab province.
PCCR would perform its role as commission and to finalize all issues including demarcation and financial issues.
Senator Sughra Imam while talking with The Express Tribune confirmed the sources’ claims, and said that the party committee had already started working.
Sub-article 4 of Article 239 states that a bill needs to be moved by two-thirds of Parliament – and then sent to the concerned provincial assembly, which also needs two-thirds of the house to pass it. The president will then sign it.
“The timing of the formation depends on the final drafting of the committee – whether it does a bulk of the work before budget or after the budget” said sources.
Published in The Express Tribune, May 17th, 2012.
COMMENTS (11)
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@Hadi Ansari: No doubt province have got due right after 18 amendment but Federation of Pakistan is still imbalanced like a car having one tyre of Tractor and Three tyres of car.
Punjab seats in NA----60 % this has srreated virtual dictation of Punjabis and they never viling give right to people other then punjabi.......bangladash people was also demanding their due right but punjabi leaders dont give them rights and out bangladesh was formed.
Resource division through federation is on the bases of population and poverty of province. Punjabi spent 80-90 % budget in their area ( SINCE Pakistan formed) and Seariki people are not working with their production force, due to lack of opportunities.
Seariki Province will make Pakistan strong
@Hadi Ansari: He wants to break up the best run and managed province in the nation because he doesn't want another political party PML N to succeed. It's plain politics. Compare Punjab with any other province in Pakistan and you can see that it is progressing despite no support from the centre. This must really bother Zardari- rather than let Southern Punjab's Seraiki belt develop along with Central and Upper Punjab, he wants to divide it so that it becomes like Sind or the other provinces. It's a shame that success in Pakistan only invites jealousy.
@Hadi Ansari:
Pakistani provinces today have more autonomy than Indian states thanks to eighteenth amendment. any further and you might just recognise them as sovereigns.
Provincial autonomy was on top of agenda of this government.So far nothing has happened. Why so much rush for new province in Punjab ?
Those who support the new province should not overplay their hand. The limitation of boundaries has to be more modest.Mianwali, Jhang and Bakhar would prefer the old Punjab unless a pronvince Khushab comprising Sargodha,Mianwali Khushab ,Bhakkar and some parts of Jhang is created. It could be called Sind Sagar.
Good Move.
I think this is a good move and favorable to PMLN in order for it to be called national party.
Even the right things done at wrong time produce wrong results. At the moment Pakistan is going through turbulent times and opening another Pandora Box will certainly add to the problems already stretching Pakistan to its limits. But our self-serving politicians are so much so blinded by the greed of their interests that they don't give a damn to the country's well being.
In my opinion, at this time, restoration of Districts Governments is the right solution for devolution of power to people. And when the time is right and the country is economically and politically stable, make all divisions, or a combination of them, into new provinces, not only in Punjab but also throughout Pakistan.
There should be four provinces in Punjab consisting of Lahore Division, Multan Division, Bahawalpur Division and Rawalpindi Divison.
Means, its not gonna happen. PPP always focus on their own political benefits rather than delivering to public.
So the plan is to delay it till the next election. Thats what it appears to be. I dont think anyone would want to create a enw provinde few months before the elction. As it is the simple KPK name change is likely to hit both ANP and PMLN this time around.