ISLAMABAD: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday called for a “full stop” to conversations regarding the creation of new provinces.
He made the remarks while speaking to the media at Spencer Eye Hospital in Karachi’s Lyari alongside Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah.
Reiterating his party’s stance in response to a question over “pressure” the PPP was facing regarding the creation of new administrative units and the possibility of rolling back the 18th Amendment, Bilawal said the people of Sindh and their elected representatives had presented their decision and “now we should put a full stop to this conversation”.
He said the Sindh Assembly had also made its stance in the matter evident for “at least seven to eight times now”.
“The people here can determine the fate of this province and the city,” Bilawal asserted.
“I think we should close this topic because the people themselves have closed it,” he said.
When asked about ongoing conversations regarding a 28th constitutional amendment and whether the government had spoken to him in this regard, Bilawal simply replied: “No.”
The PPP chairman was also questioned about the recent dispute between the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) and Pakistan Railways and the federal government’s lack of interest in the city.
“The federal government should definitely pay attention to this city. Karachi is the country’s economic hub. Everyone else should pay attention to it,” he said.
Bilawal’s remarks come amid an ongoing debate across the country about the creation of new administrative units, sparked by Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s proposal for a dialogue among all political parties to bring about reforms to the current governance system and call for new provinces and urgent administrative reforms in July.
At the time, the PPP had referred the question to its top decision-making forum, while the Sindh chief minister flatly rejected it; Lahore’s lawyers also called it unconstitutional and Sindhi nationalist groups have been demanding the minister’s resignation.
However, since Naqvi’s remarks, various political parties have also spoken in favour of it and called for the creation of more provinces or administrative units for better governance.
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) — an ally of the PML-N-led ruling coalition — has been demanding that Karachi be designated a province separate from Sindh.
However, the PPP, which rules Sindh and is also an ally of the PML-N government at the Centre along with MQM-P, has strongly opposed the suggested move.
In September, the Sindh Assembly adopted a resolution rejecting all attempts to divide the province or create new administrative units, with the CM Murad declaring that “there will be no compromise on Sindh’s geographical unity”.
