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Drawing battle lines...
By Ahmed Yusuf
Karachi
As the City Council approaches the end of its tenure, proceedings in
the Council seem to reflect that the battleground for new political
negotiations is being drawn, with each party prioritising the issues
important for its constituencies — and censuring rival parties for
their scant attention to that particular detail.
The session of the City Council on Wednesday reflected the different
preferences of the various panels of the council — not simply in
terms of political lines, but more importantly in terms of resource
allocation. For the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM)-backed Haq Parast
panel, the issue of electricity shortage overrode all other
concerns.
For the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP)-backed Awam Dost panel,
ensuring that hegemony of public utilities is not transferred to any
sole authority as well as careful and measured disbursement of money
were the primary concerns. The Awami National Party’s (ANP)
Khidmatgar and the Jamaat-e-Islami’s (JI) Al-Khidmat panels,
meanwhile, seemed more concerned about the humane treatment of
displaced persons.
Amidst the routine cacophony in the house, two phrases summed up the
mood of the session. The first was issued by Arshad Qureshi, who
said: “100 Baataon Kee Ek Baat... Karachi Mulk Ka Engine Hai.” The
second was given by Leader of the Opposition Saeed Ghani, who, at
his post-Council session press conference, said: “Muttahida Ko Awam
Se Maafi Maangni Chahiyay.”
Clearly, the Bhaichara between the PPP and the MQM is only cosmetic
— neither is willing to relinquish control over issues, and
portfolios, that are close to its interests. The Haq Parast panel’s
demand to hand over the Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC) to
the city government was obviously impinging on the right of the PPP
to maintain control over the power utility, even in the event of the
KESC being privatised. The government’s subsequent response was to
try and stop Haq Parast panel members from reaching Chief Minister
House and lodging a protest, given that President Asif Ali Zardari
was present inside. Leader of the House Asif Siddiqui told The News
that no one from inside the CM House bothered to come outside to
listen to the grievances of elected members of the city. He claimed
that without the government’s approval, the police would not have
dared to “attack” the crowd and injure one of the councillors.
While it is understandable that political parties need to cement
their positions and constituencies, an understanding at the local
level needs to be reached before proceeding with any major surgery
to local politics. Prioritising substantive coalition over political
games may be a good start.
The
News: Thursday, May 28, 2009 |
