PPP leader and Advisor to Sindh Chief Minister for Law Murtaza Wahab on Monday stepped down from the post of the administrator of the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC).
Wahab has sent his resignation to CM Murad Ali Shah for approval.
“I regrettably submit that I am unable to continue any further as administrator KMC due to personal reasons,” he wrote in a letter to the chief minister.
“I tender my resignation from the post of the administrator. You are requested to kindly direct the Local Government Department to de-notify me,” Wahab said.
He went on to thank the provincial government and PPP for granting him the opportunity to serve the people of Karachi. “During my tenure, I tried my level best to resolve the problems of our beautiful city and the ailing KMC.
“I have tried to alleviate the grim financial situation of KMC to make it a viable organisation,” the Sindh government spokesperson said, adding that the service delivery of KMC had improved.
Wahab announced his resignation in a press conference earlier in the day where he said that he was unable to continue his responsibility as administrator because of the “impediments” created by “some people”.
“There are forces at work here that don’t let us do our job efficiently. It’s not easy to work in this city as everything is resisted here,” he claimed.
Wahab was appointed administrator of Karachi last year in August to look after the administrative and municipal affairs of the metropolis before the local bodies’ elections.
Wahab’s journey in mainstream power politics took off in 2015, almost three years after the death of his mother and senior PPP leader Senator Fouzia Wahab when he was appointed an adviser to the chief minister. In November 2016, however, the Sindh High Court declared his appointment illegal as CM’s law adviser while also nullifying his chairmanship of the board of governors of law colleges in Karachi.
The PPP leader took another leap when he was elected senator unopposed in August 2017 and completed his tenure in March 2018. The seat had fallen vacant after the resignation of Saeed Ghani, up till Thursday the Sindh education minister.
His role became more active after the 2018 elections and in the new Sindh administration he was seen as more aggressive and involved in representing the PPP and its provincial government. His appointment became almost obvious a couple of weeks ago when in a one-on-one meeting with PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari he was appreciated for his “service” in Karachi and encouraged to keep it up.
