Sources say the ordinance in question is a special economic zone ordinance, but the law ministry is unsure whether the approval was bypassed
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has strongly criticized the ruling government for issuing an ordinance without President Asif Ali Zardari’s approval. The move sparked outrage and prompted PPP members to walk out of the National Assembly.
Led by Syed Naveed Qamar, PPP lawmakers staged the dismissal in protest against the notification, which was allegedly issued without the President’s signature. The dismissal left the assembly without a quorum, delaying the proceedings by 15 minutes.
Qamar described the day as the “darkest in parliamentary history”, stressing that no previous incident in Pakistan’s history involved an ordinance being issued without the president’s approval. “This is an unprecedented event and we will not accept it,” he said, adding that it undermines the constitutional process.
In response, Law Minister Azam Nazeer Tarar acknowledged the PPP’s concerns and assured that the matter would be reviewed. He noted that conflicting reports had circulated on social media regarding the regulation.
Sources indicated that the ordinance in question is the Special Economic Zone Ordinance; However, the Department of Justice remains uncertain whether such an executive order was actually issued without the president’s approval.
Read more: Islamabad Local Government Act amended, city polls reset
Earlier, President Asif Ali Zardari issued an executive order amending the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act, reshaping the federal capital’s local government structure and forcing yet another reset of the city’s delayed municipal election process.
The Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government (Amendment) Ordinance, 2026, was promulgated on January 9 and published the next day, according to the gazette notification.
The Ordinance replaces the “Metropolitan Corporation” model with “Town Corporation” structures across the Act. It calls for Islamabad to be divided into three city corporations, each aligned “as far as practicable” with the territorial boundaries of a National Assembly constituency.
Each town corporation will contain as many union councils as the federal government announces, with union councils to be demarcated based on population equality and administrative convenience, using the latest official census.
