KARACHI: The ruling PPP in the Sindh Assembly on Monday claimed to elect its mayor for the metropolis and played down the Jamaat-e-Islami's prospects for the top civic slot.

PPP's lawmaker, Imdad Pitafi claimed that his party will elect its mayor of Karachi and narrowed down the JI's chances to the top local government slot.

Speaking on a resolution by PPP's Ghanwer Isran asking the election commission to hold the deputy mayor election by first week of June 2023, Imdad said that a party with a majority will form the civic government.

Pointing at MMA's Syed Abdul Rasheed, who primarily belongs to the JI, he said that why should his party's candidate become a mayor of Karachi.

Abdul Rasheed termed the local government electoral process entirely "controversial". He blamed the PPP-led Sindh government for delays in the local government elections.

He said that the arrests of the elected representatives should not happen before the election of the mayor and deputy, besides "horse trading" at any levels. He also called for immediate completion of the civic government process.

Jam Khan Shoro, Sindh Irrigation Minister, said that after a passage of 11 months of the local government elections, the elected civic representatives could not begin their job.

He showed concerns that the delays in forming of the new local government setup will also bring problems to the mayor and deputy mayor.

Ismail Rahu, Sindh Climate Change Minister said that the second phase of the local government polls has been completed six months ago, demanding for completion of all required process at earliest

MQM's Muhammad Hussain criticized the Election Commission for its "bad" conduct, saying that all levels for the new local government setup should complete without further delays.

Sindh Local Government Minister, Syed Nasir Hussain Shah requested to the Election Commission to help complete the electoral process of the local government by June 8, 2023. The resolution was later adopted.

Nand Kumar Goklani asked the government about its efforts for holding the CCE (Combined Competitive Examination), saying that they could not be held on time.

Sindh Parliamentary Affairs Minister, Mukesh Kumar Chawla said that the court had de-notified the Sindh Public Service Commission for 18 months, which caused delays in the CCE exams.

However, a new body has been formed which will conduct exams through IBA. He said those succeed in exams will be interviewed for the available jobs in the province.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2023