Durrani says local government plan will be ready after Eidul Fitr

‘Elections most likely to be held in October or November’۔

KARACHI: Sindh Minister for Local Government Agha Siraj Durrani said on Monday that he was personally in favour of the ‘mayor system’ rather than the nazim system introduced by General Pervez Musharraf in 2001.  He was talking to the media after the core committee meeting of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) at the Chief Minister House.

Durrani said that the coalition partners had evolved consensus on major issues about the local government issue and will continue to debate in Ramazan as well. “We will finalise the new draft of the local government system after Eidul Fitr and then will present it in the Sindh Assmebly,” he said. “The government will issue the election schedule after the assembly approves the draft. They will most probably be held in October or November.”  When he was asked if other coalition partners, such as the Awami National party, Pakistan Muslim League-Functional, National Peoples Party were taken into confidence, Durrani said that all the partners will be taken into confidence before the final draft is prepared.

When The Express Tribune contacted the leaders of MQM and PPP and asked them about the meeting they did not share any details. However Wasay Jalil of the MQM said that the nazim will be more powerful than bureaucracy. Sindh Law Minister Ayaz Soomro said, “It will be a new system and we are going to give good news to people after Eid.”

However, The Express Tribune has learnt that there is no consensus among the coalition parties about local government. They agreed, however,  upon issues related to revenue, police, de-limitation of constituencies.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 17^th, 2012.