KARACHI: Vowing to implement the agreement signed with Jamaat-i-Islami to further amend the local government law in its ‘true’ spirit, Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Wednesday said that every opposition party would be taken onboard before going into the process of legislation and hinted that the next polls for the local and municipal administration were likely to be held after April 2022.

The Sindh chief minister said that the process of further amending the local government law in line with the proposals of opposition parties and the exercise of delimitation by the Election Commission of Pakistan were the only two hurdles in calling the next LG elections.

However, he added that his government was ready to prepare a schedule once these two jobs were done.

Forms body to incorporate parties’ proposals; visits JI head office

Speaking to reporters after a meeting with JI leaders at the Idara Noor-i-Haq, the party headquarters, the chief minister claimed that he had also offered to hold dialogue with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) but the opposition party never responded to his call.

“When the MQM held protest outside CM House, the same night I called Aminul Haq to condemn whatever happened with them and offered him that we could hold talks on whatever demands they have regarding local government law. You would surprise to know that he appreciated my offer, but then never came up with any response.”

Rejecting any “behind the scene understanding between two sides”, he called the JI-Sindh government agreement an example of democratic tradition.

He said the Pakistan Peoples Party government was also willing to hold talks with the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Grand Democratic Alliance, but didn’t share any proposed initiative on these lines to engage other opposition parties.

When asked about the possible schedule of LG elections in Sindh, he said that after required amendments and other necessary arrangements, there would be no further delay in the polls.

“We are in February [2022] right now and if we complete the process of amendments [to local government law] and the Election Commission completes the delimitation, then we think it may take another month or two. But we all know that there would be Ramazan in April. So let’s see,” he responded.

The JI Karachi chief, Hafiz Naeem ur Rehman, welcomed the Sindh government gesture and called it a good sign of developing political and democratic culture in the city.

He expressed the hope that all formalities and documentation from the Sindh government would be completed within next two weeks.

He said despite being a strong critic of the law passed by the Sindh government, the JI was not in favour of delaying LG elections. “It’s a part of democratic culture that parties with different ideologies having political stakes engage with each other through different mediums,” he said.

Body formed

Earlier in the day, the chief minister while chairing the meeting of the provincial cabinet said that the points on which the minister for local government had agreed with opposition parties in respect of the LG law would be implemented in true letter and spirit.

“We will incorporate the suggestions of the opposition, Jamaat-i-Islami, Pak Sarzameen Party and others in the LG law as has been agreed by the minister in his talks with them,” he said.

The chief minister constituted a committee comprising provincial ministers Syed Nasir Shah, Saeed Ghani, Mukesh Chawla, Jam Khan Shoro and CM’s law adviser Murtaza Wahab to discuss the opposition parties’ proposals, incorporate them into the law and table them in assembly for approval.

Published in Dawn, February 3rd, 2022