TWO months after local government polls were finally held in Karachi, the metropolis is no closer to having a functioning, elected municipality. The delay behind the formation of a new City Council and election of a new mayor has been caused by the fact that polls in 11 union committees, where candidates had died, have not been held. The Jamaat-i-Islami, which came in a close second behind the PPP in the results tallied thus far, has cried foul, blaming both the Sindh government and the ECP for the delay. The party held a sit-in outside the Karachi office of the ECP last week, claiming that the commission was ‘facilitating’ the PPP’s ‘post-poll rigging’. JI chief Sirajul Haq has also warned the PPP against queering the pitch where the election of the Karachi mayor is concerned.

It is indeed a matter of concern why elections for the remaining 11 UCs have not been announced. The unfortunate fact is that many of Pakistan’s political parties seem to have an aversion to elections, specifically to the third tier, though as recent events have shown, polls for the national and provincial assemblies are also not on their list of priorities. This is an affront to democracy. It is also inexplicable why the ECP is maintaining a curious silence where the completion of the LG election process in the megacity is concerned. The questions raised about transparency of the LG polls need to be addressed, while elections to the remaining UCs should be announced forthwith. Karachi is in an advanced stage of urban decay, and even the election of a fresh city government will not immediately solve issues that have been snowballing for decades, thanks to the blinkered vision of certain political players. However, there is hope that an elected, empowered mayor will at least start the process of urban regeneration, which is why further delays in the formation of the city administration are unacceptable.

Published in Dawn, March 16th, 2023