New local govt law treats Karachi differently than rest of Sindh: Scholars
They say the new system allows one party to exert undue influence in administrative affairs.
They say the new system allows one party to exert undue influence in administrative affairs.
LAHORE:
The Sindh government’s decision to treat Karachi, and four other cities, differently from the rest of the province on administrative matters is highly condemnable, as it is contributing to a feeling of betrayal and disappointment among the people in the province.
These views were expressed by panelists at an interprovincial discussion organised by an NGO, Strengthening Participatory Organisation (SPO) in Lahore on Monday. Members of the Sindh Writers and Thinkers Forum, as well as, the Centre for Peace and Civil Society (CPCS) executive director Jami Chandio, and Sindhi scholars Naseer Memon, Dr Amaan Memon, Noor Memon and Ishaaq Samejo were among those who attended the discussion. Renowned historian Dr Mubarak Ali moderated the event.
The panelists criticised the Sindh government for passing the Sindh Peoples Local Government Act 2012 (SPLGA), which they claimed had led to a “dual system” being allowed to exist in the province. Five districts of Karachi have been placed under the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, which has increased the chances that any one political party will be able to exert undue influence in administrative affairs.
Naseer Memon said that SPLGA’s chapter two clause 8, which dealt with the “creation of metropolitan corporations,” was an evidence that dual administrative systems had been installed in the province.
“The government shall, by notification in the official gazette, declare and constitute a single district Metropolitan Corporation at divisional headquarters comprising the areas of the districts of Karachi, Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur and Mirpurkhas,” said Naseer, while quoting the piece of legislation.
Naseer clarified that they were opposing the law because of the administrative structures that it set up, and not on a linguistic basis. “We are against bad governance structures that will divide Sindh on administrative grounds.”
Continuing the discussion, Jami Chandio criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party for passing the SPLGA after coming under pressure from one of its coalition partners. He also appreciated that Sindhi nationalist parties were taking part in the election campaign, and suggested that this might gradually weaken the PPP’s stronghold in rural Sindh. Memon also observed that religious seminaries were being established in the province on a regular basis, and added that the government had turned a blind eye to the “repercussions of these developments”.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 8th, 2013.
The Sindh government’s decision to treat Karachi, and four other cities, differently from the rest of the province on administrative matters is highly condemnable, as it is contributing to a feeling of betrayal and disappointment among the people in the province.
These views were expressed by panelists at an interprovincial discussion organised by an NGO, Strengthening Participatory Organisation (SPO) in Lahore on Monday. Members of the Sindh Writers and Thinkers Forum, as well as, the Centre for Peace and Civil Society (CPCS) executive director Jami Chandio, and Sindhi scholars Naseer Memon, Dr Amaan Memon, Noor Memon and Ishaaq Samejo were among those who attended the discussion. Renowned historian Dr Mubarak Ali moderated the event.
The panelists criticised the Sindh government for passing the Sindh Peoples Local Government Act 2012 (SPLGA), which they claimed had led to a “dual system” being allowed to exist in the province. Five districts of Karachi have been placed under the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation, which has increased the chances that any one political party will be able to exert undue influence in administrative affairs.
Naseer Memon said that SPLGA’s chapter two clause 8, which dealt with the “creation of metropolitan corporations,” was an evidence that dual administrative systems had been installed in the province.
“The government shall, by notification in the official gazette, declare and constitute a single district Metropolitan Corporation at divisional headquarters comprising the areas of the districts of Karachi, Hyderabad, Larkana, Sukkur and Mirpurkhas,” said Naseer, while quoting the piece of legislation.
Naseer clarified that they were opposing the law because of the administrative structures that it set up, and not on a linguistic basis. “We are against bad governance structures that will divide Sindh on administrative grounds.”
Continuing the discussion, Jami Chandio criticised the Pakistan Peoples Party for passing the SPLGA after coming under pressure from one of its coalition partners. He also appreciated that Sindhi nationalist parties were taking part in the election campaign, and suggested that this might gradually weaken the PPP’s stronghold in rural Sindh. Memon also observed that religious seminaries were being established in the province on a regular basis, and added that the government had turned a blind eye to the “repercussions of these developments”.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 8th, 2013.