Daily Times

The controversy between the Federal Government of PTI and the PPP-led Government of Sindh (GoS) over the 18th Amendment at a time when the nation is confronted with the Covid-219 pandemic is very unsettling for the entire nation and particularly the beleaguered citizens of Sindh where the cases of coronavirus infection have been rising phenomenally from the past one week. The people of Pakistan are unable to understand the purpose of this uncalled for and ill-timed vitriolic exchanges and the brewing bitterness and antagonism between the two governments that could potentially endanger the national harmony and be highly detrimental to the national endeavour to contain the devastation to be caused by the deadly coronavirus.

For the first time in the history of Pakistan, this amendment resolved the chronic issue of provincial autonomy empowering the provinces to legislate and administer the subjects falling within their purview, develop their capacities and expend their resources judicially to ameliorate the socio-economic conditions of their people. Almost all the subjects under the Concurrent List with the administrative paraphernalia were transferred to the provinces leaving the Federal Government with 7-8 Ministries. This changed the political, legislative and administrative structures of the country from the quasi presidential (with all the executive powers vested in the President) and quasi federal (with the separate lists of federal, concurrent and provincial subjects) to the fully federal system.

Since the amendment devolved more responsibilities on the provinces and reduced the liabilities of the federal authority to 7-8 Ministries, their share in the central pool of resources was also correspondingly increased to almost 57% as shown in the Seventh National Finance Commission Award to the displeasure of the establishment which, though irked and irritated to the hilt, could not stop the process during the deliberations of the All Parties Constitutional Commission under Senator Raza Rabanni spawning over two years as the mainstream parties within the Charter of Democracy or outside it including the ruling PPP and its coalition partners – MQM, Awami National Party – and Pakistan Muslim League (N) were on one page to rid the 1973 Constitution of the political muddles, legal ambiguities and unwanted additions and alterations made in it by the military dictators.

The transfer of all the 150 subjects under the Concurrent List posed a big challenge to the provinces to shoulder all the new responsibilities with a reasonable measure of efficiency and smoothness. The ministries and divisions abolished in the federal capital and transferred to the provinces were accompanied by enormous liabilities in terms of the absorption of the employees on their sanctioned strength in the already overburdened provincial exchequers. Therefore, the provinces hummed and hawed and kept delaying the transfer of these unwanted hordes of public servants. No doubt, the financial attractions of the devolution of powers were strong. Similarly, the administrative liabilities were equally daunting. Therefore, the process of transfer of ministries and divisions falling under the Concurrent List from Islamabad to the provincial capitals remained slow and sluggish even during the 5-year rule of the PPP, and came to a standstill in the PML (N) regime from 2013.

There must be some inaudible murmurs in these provinces. The Punjab as explained above may not react to the purported move to annul a few clauses of the amendment. But the reaction of Sindh will be very intense

The Punjab political leadership and the establishment, being dominant in the political, legislative and administrative institutions of the country, have never been in favour of provincial autonomy. The Sharifs, though discovered and groomed by the security establishment could never overcome their anger and anguish about the treatment meted out to them by General Pervaiz, signed the Charter of Democracy with Benazir Bhutto in a bid to end the interference of the establishment in the political developments in the country. But they didn’t have their heart in the amendment with the exception of a few clauses relating to the return of the executive powers to the Prime Minister and a constitutional cover to the removal of the bar on the third-time prime Ministership. So, they have been always suspected by the smaller provinces to be vulnerable to any underhand deal with any federal regime in Islamabad and the establishment to undo the amendment particularly the clauses relating to the financial transfers under the NFC. When in power, they delayed the 8th NFC Award and are even now ambivalent about it.

But, Mr. Prime Minister, the small provinces are very sensitive about provincial autonomy and their fair share from the central pool of resources, given their suppression to autocratic federal regimes from 1947 to 1970 and the subsequent two military dictatorships under General Zia and Pervaiz Musharraf. After a long and exacting struggle, the small federal constituents achieved a measure of political and financial autonomy, though not the status of the autonomous states as envisioned in the Pakistan Resolution of 1940, through the 18th amendment. Therefore, the sensitivity of the people of these federating units about their newly acquired autonomy can be well gauged.

The PTI is in power in KPK and is in coalition with the ruling Balochistan Awami Party in Balochistan. There must be some inaudible murmurs in these provinces. The Punjab as explained above may not react to the purported move to annul a few clauses of the amendment. But the reaction of Sindh will be very intense. The political feudal class being partner of the PPP in power will help intensify this reaction like they did in the MRD agitation to avert any threat to their political fiefdom. They will be supported by the nationalist and liberal parties and leaders from Balochistan and KPK. No politician in his sanity will support this move in Sindh, Balochistan and KPK. Even the Grand Democratic Alliance in Sindh, though supportive of the federal regime in Islamabad, will not back any move to undo certain clauses of the amendment. The move, in the long term, will certainly have adverse impact on the national harmony and the health of the federation.

Mr. Prime Minister, the constitutional issues are very sensitive and susceptible to unpredictable national sentiments and, therefore, should always be addressed through debate, dialogue and consensus.

(To be concluded)

The author was a member of the Foreign Service of Pakistan and he has authored two books