LG system transfered to provinces
Friday, July 24, 2009
The News International, Pakistan, Friday, July 24, 2009
ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani have directed the Law Ministry to finalise its recommendations regarding the local government structure with the consultation of provincial law ministries to transfer the local government system to the provinces from the federal government.
According to sources, the decision was taken a few days back during the meeting of the two and after detailed deliberations, Minister of State for Law Afzal Sindhu was directed to hold a meeting with all provincial law ministers to finalise the modus operandi in this regards.
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ISLAMABAD: President Asif Ali Zardari and Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani have directed the Law Ministry to finalise its recommendations regarding the local government structure with the consultation of provincial law ministries to transfer the local government system to the provinces from the federal government.
According to sources, the decision was taken a few days back during the meeting of the two and after detailed deliberations, Minister of State for Law Afzal Sindhu was directed to hold a meeting with all provincial law ministers to finalise the modus operandi in this regards.
More
Labels: Governance, Local Governments
posted @ 11:31 PM,
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MQM favours LB elections in Sindh
Thursday, July 16, 2009
The News International, Pakistan, Thursday, July 16, 2009
KARACHI: City Nazim Mustafa Kamal has said that the plan to appoint bureaucrats in the district governments has raised many questions. The situation of Sindh is very calm and peaceful, as compared to other provinces, so there is no reason to postpone the local bodies election here.
He was talking to Hamid Mir on phone in Geo News programme Capital Talk on Wednesday. He said that the Sindh situation was very conducive for local bodies elections. He also maintained that almost all the Nazims had political background.
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KARACHI: City Nazim Mustafa Kamal has said that the plan to appoint bureaucrats in the district governments has raised many questions. The situation of Sindh is very calm and peaceful, as compared to other provinces, so there is no reason to postpone the local bodies election here.
He was talking to Hamid Mir on phone in Geo News programme Capital Talk on Wednesday. He said that the Sindh situation was very conducive for local bodies elections. He also maintained that almost all the Nazims had political background.
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Labels: Local Governments, MQM
posted @ 8:05 AM,
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Bureaucrats to Rule Local Governments
Sunday, July 12, 2009
The News International, Pakistan, Sunday, July 12, 2009
The recent decision to dissolve the local governments across the country three months before the end of their terms remains a questionable one. Compounding the perplexing nature of the decision is the indefinite delay in the elections for a new setup due to an adverse security situation in the country, which cannot be expected to improve in the near future. In effect, this means that the administrators that the provincial governments will appoint to replace nazims and councillors will run the show for an extended time period, thereby heralding a return of the commissioner system of yesteryear. There are plenty of drawbacks to such a move.
Firstly, while it is not yet clear what the profile of the incoming administrators will be – whether they are from the bureaucracy, which is most likely, or otherwise – what we do know is that none of them will be elected. This is a questionable move given that their predecessors were elected representatives, whose legal tenure would have run up until October. This strategy is at odds with the current government’s stated democratic agenda. Handing over power to the bureaucracy, or any other unelected representatives, who are generally unaccountable, that too at the expense of elected figures, is clearly not the ideal way to go. The party-less local government system, which was introduced during the reign of Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf, had its share of detractors on the political front, particularly once the new Pakistan People’s Party-led came to power. Whatever its shortcomings, on the ground, particularly in the urban centres of Sindh, the system was viewed as a democratic success.
Source
The recent decision to dissolve the local governments across the country three months before the end of their terms remains a questionable one. Compounding the perplexing nature of the decision is the indefinite delay in the elections for a new setup due to an adverse security situation in the country, which cannot be expected to improve in the near future. In effect, this means that the administrators that the provincial governments will appoint to replace nazims and councillors will run the show for an extended time period, thereby heralding a return of the commissioner system of yesteryear. There are plenty of drawbacks to such a move.
Firstly, while it is not yet clear what the profile of the incoming administrators will be – whether they are from the bureaucracy, which is most likely, or otherwise – what we do know is that none of them will be elected. This is a questionable move given that their predecessors were elected representatives, whose legal tenure would have run up until October. This strategy is at odds with the current government’s stated democratic agenda. Handing over power to the bureaucracy, or any other unelected representatives, who are generally unaccountable, that too at the expense of elected figures, is clearly not the ideal way to go. The party-less local government system, which was introduced during the reign of Gen (r) Pervez Musharraf, had its share of detractors on the political front, particularly once the new Pakistan People’s Party-led came to power. Whatever its shortcomings, on the ground, particularly in the urban centres of Sindh, the system was viewed as a democratic success.
Source
Labels: Bureaucracy, Devolution of Power, Governance, Local Governments
posted @ 10:50 AM,
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Technical Knockout of Local Governments
Friday, July 10, 2009
Daily Times, Pakistan, Friday, July 10, 2009
After a meeting with heads or representatives of Sindh, Balochistan, the NWFP, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, the Northern Areas and Punjab, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani announced Wednesday that the Local Government elections, due in the current year, stood postponed till further decision in this regard by the provinces. Meanwhile, the local bodies (LBs) would be run by administrators appointed by the provincial governments from out of the state bureaucracy. (Local government elections are held every four years and the last ones were held in August 2005.)
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After a meeting with heads or representatives of Sindh, Balochistan, the NWFP, Azad Jammu & Kashmir, the Northern Areas and Punjab, Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani announced Wednesday that the Local Government elections, due in the current year, stood postponed till further decision in this regard by the provinces. Meanwhile, the local bodies (LBs) would be run by administrators appointed by the provincial governments from out of the state bureaucracy. (Local government elections are held every four years and the last ones were held in August 2005.)
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Labels: Development, Devolution of Power, Governance, Local Governments
posted @ 9:45 AM,
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Local govts dissolved.
Thursday, July 9, 2009
The News International, Thursday, July 09, 2009
ISLAMABAD: In a major policy decision taken with the consensus of the provinces on Wednesday, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani announced dissolving the local governments throughout the country and postponed local bodies elections till improvement in the law and order situation.
The decision would mean an effective return to the old ways of bureaucratic bigwigs lording over the masses, who would once again have no influence or say in the management of matters at the grassroots level.
The prime minister said non-political administrators would replace elected Nazims from August. He also revived the executive magistracy system in the country.
More
ISLAMABAD: In a major policy decision taken with the consensus of the provinces on Wednesday, Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani announced dissolving the local governments throughout the country and postponed local bodies elections till improvement in the law and order situation.
The decision would mean an effective return to the old ways of bureaucratic bigwigs lording over the masses, who would once again have no influence or say in the management of matters at the grassroots level.
The prime minister said non-political administrators would replace elected Nazims from August. He also revived the executive magistracy system in the country.
More
Labels: Democracy, Devolution of Power, Governance, Local Governments
posted @ 9:37 AM,
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