LAHORE: A new local government’s bill in Punjab grants authority to not -elected Deputy Commissioners (DCs), sidelating elected officials and raising alarms on democratic decline in Pakistan’s most populous province.

Saved by the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) on March 7 in the Punjab Assembly, the bill is currently under review of a standing committee where it has come under fire, not only from opposition legislators, but also from the reigning party.

Legal experts claim that the Bill undermines Article 140A of Pakistan’s constitution that requires power development to selected local bodies. Others fear that the legislation aims to prevent the emergence of powerful mayors from rival political parties.

What’s in the bill?

The proposed law introduces a two-layer structure for local authorities with a five-year period: one at Tehsil (sub-district) level and another at the Union’s advice level.

In major cities such as Lahore (population over 700,000), Upper is called a Town Corporation. Cities with populations between 200,000 and 700,000 would have municipal companies, while smaller cities (25,000 to 200,000 people) would be governed by municipal committees.

In rural areas, the upper level is called Tehsil Council.

The second layer would be known as union council, the most basic government units in both urban and rural areas.

Voters would be allowed to directly choose members of Union Council. Each advice would have 13 members-nine general and four reserved seats (for women, youth, peasants and non-Muslims).

These members would then elect mayors and deputy mayors in the top levels through an indirect vote.

The role of Deputy Commissioner

As the system starts at Tehsil level, it leaves the Deputy Commissioners, a bureaucratic position during the colonial period, in full control at the district level without chosen counterpart to control his/her powers.

In fact, DCS would have considerable power during the bill. They would facilitate the Election Commission from drawing constituencies.

And leads a newly created district authority that will be responsible for managing, operating and allocating funds to the 10 departments transferred to local authorities, namely: health, education, social welfare, population control, sports, transport, civil defense, public health technique, art and culture and tourism.

DCS would also be chairman of the District Municipal Coordination Forum, a body that could recommend legal or disciplinary action against local government officials.

While local authorities would technically control services such as water, sanitation, roads and cemeteries, among other things, the bill includes a major warning: Any existing provincial agency providing these services would retain these powers unless the provincial government decides otherwise.

During a 10th April -as a committee session, government officials admitted that Devolving Powers was “optional” and subject to the discretion of the Punjab government.

What does Govt say to defense?

Zeeshan Rafique, the Minister of Local Government in Punjab, rejected concern that the proposed local government system would place elected representatives under the Authority of the Deputy Commissioner.

“This is a misunderstanding,” Rafique said in an interview with the news of a recent event in Lahore. “The [new] Local authorities will be completely independent and autonomous bodies. They want their own budgets. DC will only sit at the district level as a representative of the Punjab government. “

Rafique claimed that the provincial government deserves credit for having rejected authority beyond the district level. “The Punjab government should be appreciated to deviate power from the districts down to the lowest level, such as the sub-district (Tehsil) and Union Council,” he said.

The Minister still acknowledged that key issues remain unresolved, especially about certain departments, such as health, should be run at all. “Yes, there are departments such as health, education, etc., where there is a debate about how much they can be rejected,” he admitted.

“But I can guarantee you,” he added, “that after this [new law is passed]It will create the strongest local government and the delivery of services will also be better. “

Last time local authorities in Punjab ended their period in 2021. Since then, no new local authorities have been elected in the province.

What do critics say?

In the April 10th meetings, PML-N’s own legislator Ahmed Iqbal Chaudhry criticized his party’s bill and called it a violation of Article 140A. He pointed out that provincial governments have already removed local bodies of their core responsibilities and gave them to provincial authorities.

He quoted Punjab Mass Transit Authority, which oversees public transport, the Pani authority, which regulates water supply, Shehr E Khamoshan authority administering cemeteries, and recently included Punjab spatial planning authority, which is tasked with preparing land use plans, as some examples of provincial bodies.

Chaudhry pointed to the words added to the law that provincial authorities will continue to perform local government functions. “What we’re doing is wrong. We remove powers from the local government and park them in [provincial] The authorities, ”he told the committee.

Experts say that another controversial provision in the bill is that each voter can only cast a vote for a general member at the Union’s advice level. They say that this effectively limits each party to field only one candidate, making it more difficult for any party to secure a majority and increase the likelihood of broken, multi -parties.

“This system is pushing political parties out of the local elections,” said Mubeen Udin Qazi, a lawyer and local government expert. “If a voter can only cast a vote, how can a party campaign for more candidates? It violates the purpose of party -based elections.”

Mayraj Fahim, a local government adviser and fellow at the City Mayors Foundation, said the bill was not a genuine attempt to develop power.

“The [the bill] is a mess, ”she said to the news.” There is no research that supports it. Punjab needs a strong system to match its population and rapid urbanization. But instead, this system is weak. It is undermined by fragmentation and overlap of functions. “

A Lahore-based academic who requested anonymity said the bill seemed to be designed to block the emergence of strong mayors who were considered potential political threats.

“There seems to be fear [within the PML-N] That this system could produce powerful mayors from rival parties, “he said,” as strong mayors often become leadership competitions and increase competition in democratic space. “

Originally published in the news