THIS is with reference to the article ‘Political disconnect’ (Sept 14) which advocated empowering local governments as a solution to the country’s governance crisis. This is a flawed premise. The prescription overlooks a fundamental political reality: local government in Pakistan has become a structural hoax, repeatedly rolled back by the very parliamentarians who fear losing their power, influence and patronage.
The historical record is unambiguous. From Gen Ziaul Haq’s 1979 local govern-ment ordinance to Gen Pervez Musharraf’s 2001 devolution plan, successive experi-ments were either dismantled or progre- ssively weakened once politicians — civilian governments — returned to power. The reasons for this resistance to local governments are not primarily ‘ideological’; they are financial and political. Federal and provincial legislators exercise considerable influence over development funds that can be used to cultivate electoral support and political patronage. The emphasis on empowering local governments, therefore, overlooks the structural capture that makes meaningful decentralisation difficult without first addressing the larger question of provincial re-organisation.
This is precisely where the creation of new provinces offers a potentially more viable path to development, including in Sindh, where the provincial government recently passed a resolution opposing the creation of new administrative units.
The development disparity between Karachi and northern Sindh is striking. Beyond Hyderabad, it is difficult to find significant urban development. The economic activities in Sindh remain heavily concentrated in a single major urban centre, while large parts of interior Sindh continue to struggle with poverty and inadequate public services. Despite substantial allocations for development in rural Sindh, concerns persist over whether these funds have translated into meaningful improvements in healthcare, education, infrastructure and other basic services.
Cultural and emotional opposition in Sindh against the creation of new provinces often invokes the unity of Sindh as an absolute and non-negotiable principle.
Pragmatically, however, this approach risks overshadowing the more pressing questions of governance inefficiency, excessive concentration of political power, and the neglect of peripheral districts, such as Kashmore, Ghotki and many others.
People in Sindh and elsewhere in Pakistan should understand that adminis-trative re-organisation or the creation of new provinces does not necessarily mean the elimination of any particular culture. Political and administrative boundaries can change without erasing a people’s language and identity or cultural heritage.
Ghulam Mustafa
Kashmore
Published in Dawn, November 2nd, 2026
