Devolution of financial powers at the grassroots level remains the major constraint behind the delay in holding the local government (LG) elections in two provinces - Punjab and Sindh - ruled by two major status quo political parties, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Peoples' Party (PPP) respectively.
Insiders as well as independent observers maintained that devolution of financial resources to the grassroots level was one of the major reasons behind the inordinate delay in LG elections, as the political parties want to undertake development projects through their parliamentarians instead of Nazims or chairmen belonging to any other party.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced the schedule for the first phase of LB election in 12 districts of Punjab on October 31. In Sindh, it was announced that the polling for the first phase will be held in Sukkur and Larkana divisions on the same day.
The ECP had earlier assured the Supreme Court that it would complete the process for holding the LG elections in Punjab and Sindh provinces until September 26. But the schedule has been delayed again and again on reasons ranging from heavy rains to difficulties in holding polls on a single day due to shortage of resources and manpower, security situation, Hajj and Muharram.
According to former secretary ECP Kanwar Mohammad Dilshad, the ruling PML-N which holds powers in the centre as well as the Punjab has already transferred the financial powers to the commissioners instead of the elected Nazims and chairmen in the amended Local Government Act 2015 Punjab.
He maintained that the amendment was made with a view to spending the development funds in a way which could be beneficial for the party in the general elections of 2018. He also pointed that Punjab government had made another amendment in the Act under which the Nazim or mayor who earlier could only be removed through a vote of no-confidence can now be removed by the chief minister.
The former ECP secretary further said that the administrative control of the district administration has also been shifted to the commissioner from the Nazim or mayor, reflecting the ill-intention of the ruling PML-N. However, senior PML-N leader Senator Chaudhry Tanvir while talking to Business Recorder rejected the impression that Punjab government was reluctant to devolve the powers to the grassroots, adding that most of the party leaders had come from the grassroots. He said delay in the polls was due to technical reasons and there was no ill-intention of the government not to hold the polls for one or the other reason.
About shifting the administrative powers to commissioners, the Senator said powers had been given to the commissioners as he/she had immense administrative experience unlike the elected Nazim or chairman. In Sindh so far, more than 1,200 candidates have already been elected unopposed - about 700 candidates out of a total of 2,333 candidates in the first phase and 500 candidates out of a total of 4,450 in the second phase of the LG polls.
In Hyderabad Sindh MQM has unopposed secured 242 seats, which indicates that the party would elect its Mayor and deputy Mayor in the second largest city of the province after securing a simple majority. PPP has managed to elect 425 of its candidates unopposed, MQM 280 and PML-F 65 while 300 candidates belonging to smaller political parties as well independent candidates have also been elected unopposed.
PPP's senior leader Senator Saeed Ghani said the provincial government of Sindh was committed to holding the LB elections as per the scheduled given by the ECP. He said the delay behind the polls was because of the MQM which had challenged the Sindh Local Government Act and delimitation process in the court. He further said that elections in the province were also delayed due to floods in various districts. However, analysts, argue that the concept of the local government is to devolve the administrative as well as financial powers to the grassroots level. They pointed out that at least 30 percent development funds should be utilised through elected district Nazims.