Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan Convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui on Friday remarked that a constitutional amendment was needed for forming “an empowered local government system in line with Article 140-A” of the Constitution.

The MQM-P leader alleged that PPP had deceived the people in the name of 18th Amendment because the said amendment only led to the accumulation of power and not the transfer of authority from provinces to local governments. Siddiqui was addressing a public gathering at Liaquat Colony ground in Hyderabad.

The Article 140-A reads: "Each Province shall, by law, establish a local government system and devolve political, administrative and financial responsibility and authority to the elected representatives of the local governments."

The federal minister for information technology called for devolving 20 per cent powers of the Sindh local government department into local and district bodies.

“MQM had earlier said that in first phase powers should be devolved from provinces to local governments and in second phase they should be transferred from federation to provinces,” Siddiqui said.

“However, the PPP government snatched whatever powers were extended [to local government] under the devolution of power system implemented by Pervez Musharraf.”

He said today’s public meeting in Hyderabad would silence the party’s opponents and critics who were “hatching conspiracy against MQM”.

Without directly naming Farooq Sattar, Siddiqui took a jibe at him and said that those who wanted to “create 1986 or 1988’s MQM must realise that MQM was established in 1984”.