Nazims’ reign ends in three provinces

ISLAMABAD: The local government system became a provincial subject after midnight on Thursday.

Provinces have decided to retain the system after making some amendments required in their jurisdictions.

Except in Sindh, all district Nazims will stop functioning from Jan 1 and administrators from the bureaucracy will be appointed to serve in their place till fresh LB elections are held.

President Asif Ali Zardari, on the advice of Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, deleted laws concerning local governments from the sixth schedule of the Constitution.

Deletion of Balochistan Local Government Ordinance, 2001 (XVIII of 2001), North West Frontier Province Local Government Ordinance, 2001 (XIV of 2001), Punjab Local Government Ordinance, 2001 (XIII of 2001) and Sindh Local Government Ordinance, 2001 (XXVI of 2001) allowed the provinces to make changes in the local government laws.

The president’s spokesman, Farhatullah Babar, said Mr Zardari described it as a new year gift to the nation which would promote provincial harmony.

“As the clock strikes midnight heralding the advent of 2010, the provinces are free to make their own laws relating to the local bodies either through legislation or ordinances. They are free to hold fresh elections or appoint administrators.”

A press release issued by the Prime Minister’s House said Mr Gilani observed that the provinces, according to their need and circumstances, may make laws and hold local bodies’ elections.

He further observed that omission of laws from the sixth schedule was a valuable dividend of democracy.

It is believed that there would be no uniformity in the LG system in the provinces because some will retain it while some will scrap it.

It has been learnt that except for Sindh, administrators would be appointed soon in provinces till the holding of fresh elections.

President Zardari has expressed the desire that the provinces should hold fresh LG polls within 90 days.

However, Punjab and NWFP governments have decided to hold elections in three and six months respectively.

“Our party has prepared a bill concerning amendments in the LG system and it is likely to be passed soon,” PML-N Information Secretary Ahsan Iqbal told Dawn.

He advocated non-uniformity in the LG system, saying the provinces should have autonomy to take a decision according to their conditions and requirements.

“Actually the uniformity in the system was desired by former president Pervez Musharraf who wanted to control the provinces through the LG ordinance,” Mr Ahsan alleged.

ANP’s senior leader Haji Adeel said his party had also prepared a draft bill containing proposed amendments in the LG system. Fresh election would be held within six months, he added.

Former chairman of the National Reconstruction Bureau Daniyal Aziz, who along with his predecessor Gen (retd) Tanvir Hussain Naqvi, gave a new concept of LG system, told Dawn that the system should not be wrapped up and if required amendments should be made.

He said he had been urging the provincial governments not to scrap the system because it was made for the betterment of people and to delegate powers to the grassroots level.

Mr Aziz recalled Article 140-A of the Constitution, which says: “Each province shall, by law, establish a local government system and devolve political, administrative and financial responsibility and authority to the ‘elected representatives’ of the local governments.”

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement has rejected the proposal to appoint administrators and said the Sindh government should hold LG elections in three months.

When the term of LGs lapsed in October, the Punjab government had sent a resolution, or draft amendment, to the president with three main points: appointment of administrators, revival of magistracy and postponing of LG polls.

Not only Punjab but the NWFP and Balochistan have also demanded that the local governments’ mandate should be restricted to municipal functions. Uplift projects and tax functions should be reviewed and assigned accordingly, the suggested.

They pleaded that law and order should be purely a provincial subject and executive magistracy should be introduced.

Meanwhile, a senior official of the ministry of local government said the provinces did not want wrapping up of the whole LG system, but demanded some amendments to put it under provincial set-up.

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