Sindh’s second chance?

Published August 29, 2016

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah is gearing up his administration to catch up with fast developing Punjab.

The private sector, though still reluctant to fully trust the PPP, welcomed Shah’s initiatives to improve governance and service delivery in the province. It is also ready to play its role in promoting Sindh’s progress and prosperity.

“I am already getting positive signals from Karachi. How I wish that the situation improve in Sindh to allow the business community to harness resources and deliver development”, Abdul Rauf Alam, President Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry, commented over phone from Islamabad.

The visible gap in the pace of progress in Sindh and Punjab has assumed embarrassing proportions for the PPP leadership. They want a quick fix and some achievements to show during electioneering in 2018. Instead of addressing the deeper causes of the rot in the province they opted to replace Qaim Ali Shah with Murad Ali Shah last month to deliver the change.


‘One month is too short a period to assess performance, more so in Sindh, marred by peculiar complexities and a record level of corruption’


“One month is too short a period to assess performance, more so in Sindh, marred by peculiar complexities and a record level of corruption”, remarked a corporate head.

Many businessmen of the province, seeking investment opportunities, vouch on positive vibes. In the absence of solid factors to base their optimism on, they overstated the benefits of regularity and punctuality in government offices.

“He is pretending to be the Shehbaz Sharif of Sindh. We are in a swing trying to match his level of energy. He is an early riser and sometimes calls meetings at 8:30am. While earlier employees used to drop in at a convenient time to mark their’ attendance, now by 9:30am all provincial offices are busy. He drops in at any office without prior notice and checks attendance. His meetings are brief and to the point with emphasis on follow ups”, says Nadir, a Grade-15 employee.

According to an insider the utilisation of public funds for development in Sindh has been pathetically low. “Sell as much optimism as you wish but progress will continue to be elusive as long as the pilferage rate in the province peaks at over 90pc. Yes, corruption is not confined to Sindh but it cannot possibly be as rampant anywhere else”, a senior officer said.

“I happen to know many who did not have enough to put a decent roof on the head of their family a decade back. Today they own multiple houses, drive luxury cars and discuss investment options over snacks in exclusive clubs. Their skill set and jobs do not justify their lifestyle but they enjoy social acceptability”, another senior member of the provincial hierarchy said.

“Sindh has plenty of funds since money transfers improved after the 7th NFC award. Do you ever wonder about ghost employees or schools or basic health units, etc? Every year projects appear on paper, funds are released but monies are deposited in personal accounts and shared in the ring of the corrupt officers and politicians”, he added, “Believe it or not there are multiple projects where less than 5pc of the allocated amount was spent and the remaining 95pc was pocketed by politicians and their cronies. In Punjab, according to anecdotal estimates, corruption cost is 45pc of the total project cost”.

“People form perceptions based on their exposure. Our experience of collaborating with the Sindh government has been wonderful. The fact is that they proved to be more dependable and efficient than other business partners”, Khalid Mansoor, CEO Hubco confirmed that development work in Thar promised by Sindh government was completed ahead of time.

According to Sindh experts, the real test of the chief minister will be: How will he resolve the issues related to multiple power centres active in the province, sometimes leading to an administrative paralysis?; And how does he break the cycle of patronage and corruption?

They do not expect spectacular improvement in Sindh any time soon. “Political parties deliver under pressure of their constituencies. The PPP has no pressure from a captive vote bank in Sindh”, a senior officer from Shikarpur said.

Citing the prevalent situation in rural Sindh he ruled out the possibility of an electoral upset in the next general elections in 2018.

“Mark my words nothing is going to change in the foreseeable future in Sindh in terms of political composition of the provincial government. Their voters in the province are accustomed to a harsh life, devoid of civic amenities and social services. The PPP voters’ expectations are low. They are grateful for whatever little trickles down to them from provincial resources on account of the Benazir Income Support Programme, Watan Card, etc. They accept hardships as their fate and value the sense of self rule under PPP”, he predicted.

“Murad is not perfect but he is the best man available for the job under the circumstances”, a businessman told Dawn. Responding to his weak performance as the provincial finance minister he absolved him of the responsibility and blamed the party leadership for political interference.

Attempts were made for input from the chief minister’s office but the response did not reach Dawn within the deadline.

Published in Dawn, Business & Finance weekly, August 29th, 2016

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