Failed endeavors

Head of PPP Media Cell

No doubt, the (PTI) leadership throughout its tenure has clearly failed in its endeavors to hurt the (PPP) as a political force in the province of Sindh and indeed from the entire political spectrum of the country by using the third degree tactics under the garb of lopsided accountability by the (NAB), ‘the tool of intimidation and suppression against political opponents and the recalcitrant journalists as edjudicated by the Apex Court in the landmark Judgment in Khawaja Brothers’ case. Ironically, the river continues to flow upstream as people do not see the course correction in this regard as the political opponents have been facing the politically motivated cases even today without respite. The PPP top leadership has been subjected to years of imprisonment on the trumpet-up charges because all such cases remained inconclusive as prosecution could not prove allegations in the court of law while seeking adjournments quite off and on. Recently, PPP Speaker of the Sind Assembly Agha Siraj Durrani was arrested by (NAB) in Islamabad on the allegation of amassing assets beyond means-- the standardized allegation on the basis of which many opposition politicians have been facing incarceration for months and years .Rich tributes to the imitable courage and steadfastness of them who flatly refused to cow down before the authoritarian forces and remained committed to the respective political parties.

The (PPP) has been gaining political grounds as was evident in the by-elections in Lahore and Khanewal, testifying the tide is turning against the ruling Party. According to the credible survey conducted in the recent past, the overwhelming majority of the people is not favorably inclined towards the ruling Party mainly due to the spiraling inflation, massive unemployment and surge in poverty.

Another bolt from the sky is the decision of the federal government to stop funding of the devolved Ministries’ development projects in the provinces. IT may surely be a bad news for the provinces in general and for the province of Sindh in particular where (PPP) led government is in power. It has been bracing the ire of the (PTI) leadership in perpetuity considering it political rival in Karachi, the metropolitan port city and the beating-heat of the country’s economy. The (PTI) leadership generally has no stomach to tolerate the political opponents let alone accommodating them in tandem with democratic ethos. PTI government Ministers and its leadership including the coalition partners (MQM) never miss any opportunity in their attempts to embarrass the provincial government with vengeance.

The Governor House, Karachi, is apparently known by PPP leadership as the center of anti-PPP activities where political opponents of the (PPP) huddle to figure out strategy and schemes to hit the provincial governance both inside and outside the Assembly by berating the performance of the provincial government. It may be recalled; the Sindh government’s strict and immediate action to contain the Covid-19 pandemic was though appreciated by the media and the doctors’ organizations right across as the right step but chided by the (PTI) leadership although the federal government also had to resort to full lockdown later on to for the same reason.

Fairness demands the good work should serve as template to the federal government to emulate in the provinces where PTI is the ruling party. But, the ruling party cares less of such high value consideration as it fell on the deaf ear. Such politicking better be jettisoned by the ruling Party. Let us hope against all odds notwithstanding the (PTI) leadership’s aversion to inclusive politics and course correction.

Unfortunately, unwarranted, unsolicited and outlandish interference in the affairs of Sindh government by the central government has been going on unabatedly based on the tainted thinking of the ruling party (PTI) that the provincial government losses will be their political gains.

This type of flawed mindset is the root cause of the political polarization that the (PTI) leadership has delivered in the country’s politics that may surely be fraught with dangers to constitutional rule and to the federation .Center’s raising red hearings to divert the attention of the provincial government from serving the people holistically seemed the part of its politicking of the ruling Party. The Federal Ministers’ usual and misplaced criticism of the Sindh government alleging it as responsible for sufferings of the people due to the hoarding of sugar and fertilizer, expansive availability of flour to the poor as compare to other provinces, highlighting the civic problems facing the major cities of Sindh province especially Karachi when situation in the mega cities of the provinces of (PTI) led governments is equally bad. The instigation of anti-(PPP) political forces like (MQM), GDA and some others to keep the provincial administration under undue pressure are the familiar tactics of the ruling Party (PTI) those fly in the face of it equating with skullduggery and arrogance at the same time.

The law and order situation in the province of Sindh usually finds much space in the airwaves dominated by federal ministers and the coalition partners while the state of affairs in this count in the rest of the country may not be better. The heart-breaking lynching and burning of the dead body of the foreign national in Sialkot (Punjab) in the recent past has ashamed the nation bedeviling the image of the country beyond recognition at the international level .Unfortunately, the federal government representatives and its coalition partner’s opprobrium is generally not for the constructive purposes but sadly in sync with ‘criticism for criticism sake’ filled with politicking of negativity and immaturities. How unbecoming for the federal set up that Sindh Chief Minister had not been invited in umpteen times during Prime Minister’s visit to Karachi in which Sindh situation and development projects were discussed, according to media reports. In the recent past, the absence of the Sindh Chief Minister and its representatives was quite conspicuous during the inauguration ceremony by the Prime Minister of the Green Bus Public Transport project in Karachi. This overtly step-motherly treatment meted out to the Provincial Chief Minister and to the provincial government could not be justified by any stretch of imagination. It indeed reflected poorly on the federal government leadership, unfortunately.

The recent decision of the federal government to stop the funding of the provincial development projects of the provinces those had been devolved to the provinces after the 18th amendment is indeed reflective of the match-box-size thinking of the ruling leadership of the federal government.

The decision may not hurt the other provinces like the Sindh government as the federal government may find pathways out to compensate the provincial governments of other provinces by doling out huge sum of money out of the Prime Minister’s huge discretionary development fund running into billions of rupees.

The government of Sindh is likely to be left out because the federal government may not help it out it the way it may embark upon bailing out the other provincial governments. It is feared the province of Sindh may resultantly be subjected to tacit discrimination because the federal government may not help out the opposition led provincial government when viewed in the context of its treatment meted out during the past three years. Even small largesse to the Sindh government may remain a far-fetched cry. Ideally, such realization should have been pre-empted by the national leadership while keeping in view the interest of the federation. Party politics may be pushed to the periphery to be taken up when such pursuit does not clash with the constitutional imperatives. Federal and provincial government working relationship has been clearly defined in the constitution on the fundamentals of supplementing the cause of each other instead of confronting each other fueled by unworthy political considerations.

Now, the federal government is contemplating to cut down the development expenditures under the diktat of (IMF), and axe may fall on the provincial share in the ‘divisible pool’ that was significantly increased under the 7th National Finance Award during the previous PPP led government in the country. The decision of the federal government not to fund the development projects pertaining to the devolved Ministries under the 18th amendment.

But, it may be mentioned here that it was contingent upon the broadening of the tax base to generate revenue to the extent of sufficiently meeting the future needs of the provinces relating to the development projects. The revenue generations efforts put in by FBR during the period failed to the expand the ‘divisive pool, and therefore no proportionate increase in the financial resources of the provinces occurred inhibiting their capacity to fund the development projects as pointed out by the federal government. The funding of the development projects of the devolved Ministries seem impossible for the provinces and therefore the federal government may continue the funding of such projects being the custodian and also in the interest of the people who may not be deprived of the resultant benefits out of the completion of development projects.

Tailpiece: People across the country heaved a sigh of relief as the Supreme Court restored more than 16000 employees whose services were terminated by the earlier decision of the Apex Court during the month of August this year. Tributes to the legal team of the PPP consisting Mr. Raza Rabbani, Sardar Latif Khosa and Barrister Atizaz Ehsan that argued the case using their legal expertise acquired during their distinguished career.

Akram Shaheedi

muhammadshaheedi@yahoo.com