Commissionerate system: Local govt draft sent to coalition

KARACHI: The final draft on restoring the commissionerate system has been handed over to coalition partners, including the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Awami National Party (ANP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Functional before it will be brought up in the Sindh Assembly during the upcoming session to be held on January 7.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Sardar Ahmed, parliamentary leader of the MQM in the Sindh Assembly, confirmed that they have received a draft of the bill and would submit their feedback on January 5. “Currently, Farooq Sattar, deputy convenor of our party, is out of the country. When he returns, we will hold a meeting to decide the fate of the commissionerate system,” he said.

The matter has been on hold for a while. According to Sardar Ahmed, no meeting on the local government ordinance was held between the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)and the MQM for the last six months. “We will clarify our position before the assembly. We don’t want to comment before that,” he said.  When asked about the revival of the five districts of Karachi and Hyderabad, he said, “Nothing like that will happen.” Indeed, sources said that the PPP has withdrawn its demand to restore Hyderabad and Karachi to their old status.

Sources also said that the MQM has been insisting that there is no need to revive Karachi as a “division” and that its status of a “district government” should be retained. The MQM has long maintained that powers should lie with the nazims or the mayor, especially in Karachi, and that the commissioner should be subordinate.

Sources privy to the draft legislation said that the government has agreed to create five zones instead of districts in Karachi and is waiting for the final approval from the MQM.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Labour Minister Ameer Nawab (ANP), said that his party has also received the draft and is willing to restore the commissionerate system. “I have studied the draft, which recommend the old commissioner system. We will support it in the assembly,” he said.

Jam Madad Ali, leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, said that they had already expressed their support for the commissioner system but “some friends” were opposing it. “Taking the grievances of our friends into consideration, we had given them a functional formula,” he added.

The local government bill was introduced in the Sindh Assembly around 10 months ago but due to differences between coalition partners MQM and PPP, it could not be passed.

The Sindh governor has already promulgated the ordinance three times to postpone the date of legislation.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2010.