A hurried law

Published October 3, 2012

…WHETHER it is Kalabagh dam, the NFC Award or some other issue related to the core interests of the province, in the past the Sindh Assembly has played a role in accordance with public opinion. But recently, certain actions have been taken which are deadly opposed to the will of the people….

People gave a decision last year when a complete shutter-down strike was observed in the province against a dual local bodies system…. What need arose to present a rejected product in new packaging?...

[The local government law] is an important law … [yet] it was hurriedly introduced through an ordinance and later with the same haste was passed by the assembly…. An attempt should have been made to refine it and remove the apprehensions … of the people who were opposing it….

The leaders of the ruling party were also of the opinion that the ordinance was not the final word. Any change … was only possible [if] it had been discussed thoroughly. The question is whether members of the treasury benches had any reservation … about this controversial law. No doubt the ruling party has a mandate, but did they get the mandate to pass such a law? ... — (Oct 2)

Selected and translated by Sohail Sangi.

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