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Region

To Be or Not To be

The 18th Amendment has raised many questions and concerns which must
be addressed if governance is to be improved.

By Muhammad Omar Iftikhar | January 2021

to be not to be

One of the hot topics these days pertains to the 18th Amendment. Whereas the influencing decision-makers in the political fabric of Pakistan considered it a positive step, many efforts need to be done to make it a holistic endeavour. The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has shown great concern to keep the 18th Amendment unchanged. Moreover, Prime Minister Imran Khan has ruled out any step to roll back the Amendment but has asked for its review.

Commenting on the 18th Amendment’s devolution, the Prime Minister said, “Devolution is always effective for a good governance system. I have no objection to the 18th Amendment nor am I against it. But they have included several things in that reform in haste. They definitely needed to be reviewed and fixed. There are several things wrong in it [18th Amendment] and they are not practical.”

Murad Ali ShahMany areas of the administration became difficult to handle after the 18th Amendment was implemented in 2010. The areas such as food standardization, drugs, and environment need to be streamlined under a single policy as provinces are managing their protocols under varying policies.

According to the Prime Minister, during his visit to an Ehsaas Center in Larkana in June 2020, he said the 18th Amendment gave all powers to the Chief Minister. “In the devolution system, powers are transferred from provinces to local administration. But here we see that our local bodies don’t enjoy any power. All powers are enjoyed by the chief minister and he has become a kind of dictator. He’s not offering powers to the local administration. The effective devolution functioning requires a three-tier system but here it’s stuck in two tiers.”

When the 18th Amendment was passed on April 8, 2010, by the PPP government, much ruckus was created as it devolved powers to the provinces. The key areas in this regard were health, social welfare, women empowerment, and local government. A rift has emerged between those who want a strong centre and those who have their interests bonded with the federal system. The 18th Amendment has been the reason for this division. While some analysts ar of the opinion that the state has been weakened because of this amendment, others say that the financial aspects of the provinces have come under jeopardy. According to journalist Zahid Hussain, “It is certainly not possible to undo the amendment that was passed by parliament; the consensus involved all the political parties. It could only be repealed through extrajudicial means. There is no evidence of any move to impose presidential rule. Any such adventurism would be disastrous not only for the future of democracy but also the country. The 18th Amendment has indeed been the most radical step in turning the country into a federation in line with the 1973 Constitution.”

The provinces must devolve powers to the districts and sub-districts.

The 18th Amendment challenge has been quite serious. The devolution of power and decision-making steps have not been transferred to the districts and sub-districts. This keeps the power concentrated in a few hands. When those occupying offices at the district and sub-district level cannot act, the utilization of resources, implementing actions and taking decisions remains a distant dream. Moreover, the provinces have been doing what they think is right. This has been taking the provinces towards dissent, discord and disagreement.

A case in point is the educational curriculum that each province devises and promulgates as it pleases. Varying policies are being implemented in all public sectors. The need of the hour is to bring all provinces and their plans, actions and strategies on a level playing field. This will create unity among them and give power to the state when running affairs. If not, then the provinces must devolve powers to the districts and sub-districts. They must ensure that powerful decision-makers are placed at each tier to handle all situations and facilitate the progress and development in each province. We have seen how Sindh remains a deserted region where people in districts, towns, and cities continue to survive without basic necessities. Even in Karachi, one can see how state affairs have become so unsatisfactory. The city government that once kept the city clean is now nowhere to be found and the city streets continue to be filled with heaps of garbage. The same is the case with education, health and justice.

While the 18th Amendment offers provinces with legislative and financial autonomy, some political parties are not eager to devolve this power to the next tier. This invisible glass partition is preventing real change to enter the social structure that needs it the most. The 18th Amendment could be abolished but only for the greater good.

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