JI leader Hafiz Naeemur Rehman. PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI:
Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) chief Hafiz Naeemur Rehman on Sunday accused provincial governments of systematically undermining the local government system and warned that continued violations of constitutional devolution are eroding democracy and exacerbating crises of urban governance, especially in Karachi.
Addressing a press conference at Idara Noor-e-Haq, JI Karachi headquarters, Hafiz Naeem said the provincial authorities had become “the biggest obstacle to strengthening the local government system”, despite clear constitutional guarantees.
He said, “Article 140 A of the Constitution emphasizes the devolution of powers, but it is widely violated due to politics and corruption.”
Targeting Sindh’s ruling party, the JI leader said the relationship between the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) was driven by expediency rather than public interest, asserting that their conflicts are “only artificial dramas to deceive the public”.
He added that the public had rejected both parties, alleging that the PPP was expressing its frustration over electoral setbacks through hostility towards Karachi.
Claiming that “the OPP government has already consumed Rs 3,360 billion belonging to Karachi”, Hafiz Naeem questioned where the city’s reduced share of 15 to 20 percent under Octroi and Zila Tax (OZT) was spent and lamented the absence of accountability.
Referring to Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, he asked if “Bilawal’s vision was to turn Karachi into Mohenjo-daro”, saying that inaugurating a few buses would never solve the city’s deep-rooted transport crisis.
