Let There Be 16 Provinces In Pakistan:
An End To The Mutual Bickering
24 November 2012
By Saeed Qureshi
One of the biggest hurdles in the way of good
governance and fair distribution of funds in Pakistan
is the awfully less number of provinces. One of the
most overriding priorities for any government in
Pakistan is to create minimum 16 provinces in order to
broaden the scope of development and nation building.
While the existing four provinces should each be
portioned into three or four smaller units or
provinces, the Fata region, the Northern states of
Chitral, Swat, Hunza, and Dir, should be converted
into provinces as well. The more there would be
administrative units, the more the governance would
become efficient and decidedly development oriented.
The existing four provinces are like four states
within a state. These four elephantine administrative
units create regional and provincial friction
bordering on hatred. Ever since the creation of
Pakistan, one of the overriding snags in the way of
coveted national cohesion and unity are these mega
provinces that vie and remain at loggerheads with each
other. With a separate language of each province, the
four separate nationalities look conspicuously
distinct. Besides it creates communication barriers
between the people with less or no knowledge of the
national language Urdu.
Once the question of creation of more provinces is
addressed, the stability of Pakistan can be
guaranteed. Otherwise the clash of interests would
keep the center and provinces in mutual bickering and
feuding. The break-away feelings and insurgency that
is going on in Balochistan can be nailed and quelled,
once and for all, if the constitutional obligation of
devolution of powers to the provinces is fulfilled.
At present provinces of Balochistan, Sindh, NWFP,
harbor a host of grievances against Punjab that range
from taking more share of funds to the undue use of
water. There are simmering feelings of discontent and
aversion against Punjab because of the army whose bulk
comes from Punjab. Punjab is the target of complaints
and grudge of other provinces for being a privileged
province as was West Pakistan compared to the former
East Pakistan.
East Pakistan's cessation (for Bengalis independence)
could have been averted if the Eastern wing of
Pakistan was fairly and equitably treated. Similar
kind of specter and danger of disintegration looms
over Pakistan now, which can be warded off, if more
provinces are carved out of the existing ones.
The fruits of devolution of powers are universally
known for balanced and effective development of both
rural and urban areas of a country on one side and the
backward and advanced areas on the other. In big units
as we have in Pakistan, the major chunks of funds go
to those cities or towns from which the politicians or
the members of the parliament come. Even otherwise in
Pakistan, the rural development has mostly remained
neglected because most of the development funds are
spent in the urban areas.
Bangladesh that separated from the West Pakistan in
1971, despite being much smaller in area (148000 sq km
to 796000 sq miles of Pakistan) has 6 provinces and 64
districts. Bangladesh has a system of distribution of
resources and funds for development that is much
transparent, grass root and effective than Pakistan
because the money is spread over more administrative
units and therefore is spent on a vast area. India has
28 provinces (states) and 610 districts. Besides,
there are seven union territories. Under the States
Reorganization Act of 1956, the states were
reorganized on linguistic basis.
The United States of America is one country where such
a remarkable model for division of powers is in vogue.
The 50 states (provinces) are almost independent in
running their local governments even having direct
trade with outside world. This model can be followed
in Pakistan as far as possible.
Pakistan has four big federating units and 127
districts. The social and civic development remains
largely confined to the big cities. The people have to
travel all the way to the provincial capitals to meet
the assembly members at a big financial cost and
wastage of time.
As such even after 60 years of its existence, it is
devoid of highways between major cities and an
efficient railway system. The people suffer from poor,
inadequate or deficient civic utilities. The political
chaos takes it spillover toll on the quality of life.
The availability of sustained potable water and power,
disposal of solid waste, health, education, orderly
traffic and good transportation that are components of
good city management and a smooth civic life have
remained unrealized. The quality of life in Pakistan
is abysmally low.
Unfortunately, due to rampant corruption and lack of
effective accountability, the funds are misused and
misappropriated. The development projects sometimes
exist on the paper only. The quality of work on
building roads and other projects in Pakistan is
woefully inferior. The oversight and strict compliance
of codes and regulations are more often than not,
violated and breached with connivance of the
bureaucracy and government officials.
The scams and scandals, the nepotism and favoritism in
doling out contracts, permits and lucrative licenses
are given mostly to the party members, friends, and
kith or to those who grease the palms of the members
of the officialdom, bureaucracy and the parliament
members.
Each province would not wait for the four provincial
capitals for sanction of funds for development.
With the creation of smaller provinces, the people
would be able to take independent decisions, have
sense of participation and commitment and socio-
political freedom, tackle their problems be it law and
order or building roads and dams. With more courts in
the new provinces the perennial backlog of pending
cases could be speedily decided.
The long standing demands of many regions with common
language and ethnic bonds such as Siraiki belt and
Hazara could be met by converting these areas into
full fledged provinces. The population of Hazara
region wants to separate from the Pushto speaking
parts of NWFP (now Pakhtunkhwa Khyber) because their
language is Hindko, a mixed dialect of Pushto and
Punjabi. Ethnically they are hugely different from the
Pashto speaking areas. Siraiki speaking people want to
have a separate province because they look different
from both Sindh and Punjab as for their language and
culture is concerned.
Such considerations as common folklore, common
language or dialect, common ethnic and cultural milieu
and administrative efficiency should be kept in view
in creating more provinces.
The provincial autonomy once given would relieve the
center of the bureaucratic over-lordship. The function
of the center would be to make policy decisions and
with the coordination of the provinces implement
these. The shifting of most of the ministries to the
provincial domain would alleviate enormous
administrative and financial load on the center.
More provinces will lessen the prevailing acrimony,
mutual apprehensions and tensions between the four
provinces. It would readily assuage the sense of
deprivation and discrimination nursed by the smaller
provinces against the big province which in this case
is Punjab. Such a monumental change would catapult the
much coveted paradigm of good governance in Pakistan.
Such a landmark decision would undoubtedly put
Pakistan on the road to economic prosperity and socio-
political stability and forestall the breakaway
tendencies.
The PPP government deserves huge applause and due
credit for passage of the 18th amendment in 2010. It
was a giant step that among other revolutionary
changes has abolished the concurrent list of 47
subjects. These subjects were the sordid legacy of the
British imperial rule and had kept the autonomy of the
provinces host and vulnerable to the interference by
the central government.
However, the division of Pakistan into more provinces
has to yet to be undertaken. The 18th amendment has
taken care of the transfers of powers to the
provinces. But to make use of those powers fruitfully,
the creation of more provinces is imperative. Such a
momentous measure would also put an end to the mutual
bickering between the four provinces.
Note: It is revised text of my previous article on
the same theme.
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EsinIslam.Com
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