ISLAMABAD: Federal Planning Minister Ahsan Iqbal has called for major changes to Pakistan’s governance structure, saying the country should either create 15 new provinces or establish 160 effective district governments.
Speaking at a consultation session on Islamabad Capital Territory governance reforms, Iqbal said the existing two-tier government structure had become ineffective in improving social indicators.
He said Pakistan’s democracy had become overly centralized, with only 1,170 government offices serving a population of around 260 million.
According to Iqbal, between 150,000 and 200,000 government offices would need to be established through local governments to effectively address public problems.
He warned that if politicians failed to reform the system, the situation could eventually spiral out of control.
Iqbal said Pakistan’s democratic system could not function effectively without a fully empowered third tier of government.
He noted that the federal government transferred 17 departments to the provinces in 2010, but the provinces did not transfer any departments to local governments.
Referring to Article 140-A of the Constitution, Iqbal said the provision recognizes local governments as the third tier but requires greater clarity on the transfer of administrative, financial and political powers.
He cited India’s 28 states and Afghanistan’s 34 provinces as examples, saying that if Pakistan was not ready to create new provinces, establishing 160 empowered district governments was the only option.
On Islamabad, Iqbal said the capital’s administrative structure was based on a presidential order, leaving around 2.6 million residents without a meaningful role in running the capital’s affairs.
Leave a Reply