KARACHI: Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah on Thursday advised Sindh Governor Mohammad Zubair that he, being the governor, ought to work within constitutional limits and need not suggest to the people whom they should cast their votes for in the next general elections.

The chief minister made this comment during an informal talk with the media at CM House when his attention was drawn to the governor’s statements at a function earlier in the morning.

Speaking at the Sixth Islamic Finance Expo and Conference, Governor Zubair highlighted the need to work jointly for the promotion of Islamic banking in Sindh. He later discussed the overall development situation of the province. He said: “The situation in Karachi is to an extent better but the condition in the interior of Sindh is extremely bad.

“The transport system in the Quaid’s city is [in] extremely worst [shape], which is a matter of shame for us.

“People should vote in 2018 elections [for] those who had developed Lahore.”

In reply to a question, the governor said the Rangers would stay in Karachi until their services were required here. He said that the business community’s cooperation was needed for Karachi’s development.

When asked about his views on the governor’s observation, the chief minister said it was not appropriate on the governor’s part to suggest to people whom they should vote for. “It is beyond his [the governor’s] constitutional limits,” said Mr Shah.

While expressing gratitude to the governor for having seen the ongoing work in Karachi, the chief minister urged him to also visit other parts of the province as development work across Sindh was under way on a “massive scale”.

Later, PPP’s Sindh chapter president Nisar Ahmad Khuhro told a press conference here in his chamber at the Sindh Assembly that the governor better not indulge himself in “wishful thinking” of imposing governor’s rule in Sindh.

Reacting to the remarks made by Governor Zubair, Mr Khuhro said the governor was not supposed to launch an election campaign of the PML-N in Sindh. Perhaps Mr Zubair was not familiar with the norms of the governor’s office and had much to learn first, Mr Khuhro said. “Those indulging in wishful thinking to impose governor’s rule, ought to know that there is no more provision of 58-2(B) in the Constitution,” he added.

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2017