Local Government Critical in Pakistan’s 2013 Political Landscape
Throughout Pakistan’s history, the issue of local government – and whether it is elected or bureaucratic – has been used by various regimes to advance their own agendas. The 18th Amendment of the Constitution passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on April 8, 2010, requires that Pakistan’s four provinces (Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan, and Khyber Pakhtunkwa) “establish a local government system and devolve political, financial, and administrative responsibility and authority to the elected representatives of the local government.” The many supporters of this amendment hope that it will bring government decision-making closer to citizens and prompt local officials to be more responsive to their needs and demands.
However, despite the legal requirement that each province hold local government elections by the end of the year, no elections have been scheduled for 2012. To date, only Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtunkwa (KP) have developed the local government laws which will determine the structure and operation of local government in each province and which are a necessary pre-cursor to any local government election. (more…)