KARACHI: The last hitch in carrying out delimitation in Sindh by the Election Commission of Pakistan was removed when the provincial assembly passed the Sindh Local Government (Amendment) Bill, 2015 on Tuesday.

The bill empowers the election commission to delimit councils, committees and wards in the manner as provided in Section 31-A of the Sindh Local Government Act (No XLII), 2013.

During clause-by-clause reading of the bill, two minor amendments proposed by Muttahida Qaumi Movement lawmakers Syed Sardar Ahmad, Khawaja Izharul Hassan and Mohammad Hussain were inserted.

Also read: ‘LG polls in Sindh, Punjab may be delayed beyond 2015’

Clause 8-A says that the basic unit for election to the union council or committee will be known as a ‘ward’ while Clause 9 says the population of the union council or committee will be between 40,000 and 50,000.

Earlier, Parliamentary Affairs Minister Dr Sikandar Mandhro highlighted salient features of the amendment bill saying that it was drafted in line with an apex court order.

He said the powers for carrying out delimitation of wards and constituencies would remain with the election commission only up to the local government elections after which the delimitation powers would be transferred to the Sindh government.

He said Sindh was always prepared to hold the local bodies elections but could not make it earlier due to compliance of directives from the apex court.

Deputy parliamentary party leader of the MQM Khawaja Izharul Hasan said that unfortunately the local government elections, which formed the third tier of the government, were not held in the provinces other than Balochistan during the past five years. In Sindh, too, despite many attempts to hold the local bodies polls since 2010, the plan could not materialise, he added.

MQM parliamentary party leader Syed Sardar Ahmad welcomed the bill and expressed the hope that the local government powers, which were curtailed, would be restored gradually.

Pakistan Muslim League-Functional parliamentary party leader Nand Kumar moved two amendments to Clause 4 and 5, which were rejected by the house after clarification by the parliamentary affairs minister that the delimitation powers being given to the election commission would be restored to the government after the local bodies elections.

Details of local bodies

According to the bill, the government shall by notification in the official gazette determine the number of union councils, union committees and wards in municipal committees and town committees in accordance with the First Schedule. After demarcation, the election commission shall delimit the union councils, union committees and wards, the area of each unit shall be a territorial unit and the population of each unit in a district shall be uniform and their boundaries shall not cross the limits of a revenue taluka or as the case may be, a metropolitan corporation, district municipal committee and town committee.

The government may after inviting objections from residents hear them and after consultation with the local government institution concerned could make alteration of the respective area.

Besides, a union council or union committee shall comprise four wards for general members each elected from his respective ward, one woman member, one labourer or peasant member and one non-Muslim member while election of chairman and vice chairman would be contested as joint candidates.

In each district, there shall be a district municipal corporation comprising all the elected vice chairmen of the union committees within that district, with 22 per cent seats reserved for women, five per cent for labourer and five per cent for non-Muslims, the election of DMC chairman and vice chairman would be held by show of hands. In case of metropolitan corporation, the composition would be same but the chairman and vice chairman would be called mayor and deputy mayor.

But Dr Mandhro, Finance Minister Murad Ali Shah and Education Minister Nisar Khuhro insisted on taking up the bill for consideration immediately. They were opinion that after the 18th amendment, the National Insurance Company of Pakistan had been devolved and as such there was urgency to enact a law for all insurance business related to any public property under the administrative control of corporations, autonomous and semi-autonomous institutions, local councils shall be placed with the Sindh Insurance Company and shall not be placed with or procured from any other insurer.

Public property insurance

The assembly on Tuesday, which was a private members’ day, also passed with a majority vote the Sindh Insurance of Public Property Bill, 2015 despite its opposition by MQM and PML-F lawmakers who wanted that the bill be sent to a standing committee or deferred for another day.

Religious books back in curricula

Only two private resolutions were taken up by the house that was called to order at 10.35am and adjourned at 2.15pm by Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani till Monday.

The first resolution moved by PML-F parliamentary party leader Nand Kumar was adopted with consensus after speeches across the benches by a dozen of lawmakers. By the resolution, the assembly resolved that the education department must include religious books of non-Muslim communities in school curricula for students belonging to religious minorities and appoint teachers on a need basis. In the resolution, it was stated that religious books of Hindu community were part of school curricula during the 1970s but the education department later changed the curricula.

The second resolution tabled by MQM lawmaker Naila Munir recommended that the Sindh Assembly approach the national assembly to make provision in the law to have seats reserved for people living with some physical disability in the assembly through an election by provincial assembly members.

Dr Mandhro said such a provision required amendment to the constitution, while political parties could award party tickets to get them elected on general seats. After speeches by half a dozen lawmakers when the resolution put to vote it was rejcted by the house.

Published in Dawn February 25th , 2015

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