Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and I have been arguing that Pakistan’s governance system has failed ever since we launched our seminar series ‘Reimagining Pakistan’ and then launched our party Awaam Pakistan.
Now our serving interior minister, who has since been awarded our highest civilian honour, has also said the same. He has proposed smaller provinces or administrative units as a solution.
Empowered administrative units, within or without existing provincial boundaries, are necessary but not sufficient. However, it is clear that rural Sindh has limited buy-in for disturbing provincial boundaries. Although this may be because the PPP and others don’t want to lose Karachi and its resources, it’s best to keep provincial boundaries as is and create administrative units within the provinces.
To understand why we need changes to our local governance system, consider that in last year’s development expenditure, Punjab spent Rs13,240 per citizen in Lahore and only Rs460 per citizen in Layyah. This is 2900% more per Lahore citizen. The citizens of Karachi, who make up 38% of Sindh’s population, aren’t even supplied 1.5% of Sindh’s share of water. Today’s debate is driven by such lopsided provincial decisions.
But just smaller administrative units aren’t enough. We need to overhaul our entire governance system so that we end up with a smaller government, lower taxes and utility rates and better government services across Pakistan. Now that we are reimagining administrative units, it is the right time to rethink the entire governance structure.
In a reimagined system, the people should elect the prime minister directly instead of through the National Assembly. The PTI also demanded this after Imran Khan lost the assembly’s confidence. These direct elections, as in France, should be held in two rounds, with only the top two vote-getters in the first round advancing to the second.
Because of the fear of losing votes of no-confidence, various party leaders, through the 14th and 18th amendments, have taken away parliamentarians’ right to vote according to their conscience — unless they are willing to exit parliament. The Supreme Court then went a step further and questioned whether parliamentarians even have a conscience, taking away their right to vote against their party leaders.
We thus have the most expensive parliamentarians in South Asia, yet also the most powerless. Our parliament under the current law is but a rubber stamp. What is the point in having such a parliament? Therefore, we must elect prime ministers directly for the whole term, not require votes of confidence, and let parliamentarians vote freely. This will make parliament powerful.
Elections to the National Assembly (with a maximum of 200 seats) should be based on party lists and proportional representation. Parties should be required to have at least every tenth person on the list to be a woman, every twentieth person to be a member of a religious minority and no more than 15 out of every 20 members on the list from the same province.
Proportional representation means that, for every party, a voter in Quetta or Charsada is just as important as a voter in Lahore or Larkana. The people of Balochistan, who feel neglected because they have so few seats and often (wrongly) demand more seats in the National Assembly — thus doing away with the basic principle of one person, one vote — will see their votes treated as important as any other citizen’s.
Requiring women and minorities on party lists will ensure at least a minimal representation for women and minorities. Requiring at least five out of every 20 members to be from different provinces will force parties to become more federal. Women and minorities elected on party lists will bring their credentials and credibility and will not be elected due to obsequiousness or familial ties to the leadership.
With the advent of proportional representation, any interference by MNAs and MPAs in constituency politics or any political logic for constituency funds will also vanish. It is time we end these funds and eliminate the resultant corruption.
There is extreme corruption in Senate elections. Some candidates pay even billions to buy a seat. To end such corruption, let each division elect one senator directly every three years for a six-year term.
The provincial assemblies should be composed only of district, tehsil and town nazims and city mayors within the province. The chief minister should also be directly elected.
Mayors of all cities and nazims of all districts, towns and tehsils and chairmen of all union councils should also be elected directly by voters. Responsibilities for policing, education, health, roads, sewerage, garbage collection, water supply, zoning, and building control should be allocated among union councils, tehsils, towns, districts and cities, with functions assigned to the lowest possible level. No provincial government should have the right to oust an elected official and an elected official should only be replaced with the next elected one.
High courts, regulations, environment and irrigation may remain with the provinces. We should strive to find the most efficient way to divide resources and responsibilities between levels of government and learn from best practices around the world. Given that most responsibilities will lie with the local governments, at least 90% of the NFC funds should flow directly from the federation to cities and districts, with the remaining going to provinces.
In the NFC formula, 70% weight should be given to population, 20% to poverty, 5% to area and 5% to meeting national objectives of reducing population growth, schooling kids, providing better healthcare, etc. Of course, this is just one possible suggestion for sharing: other metrics can be considered.
On the NFC Award, I have written that 60% of the first Rs12,000 billion collected by the federation, including levies, and 20% after that, should be distributed to provinces and local governments. This can be revised every five years based on inflation, economic and revenue growth, etc.
Since the existing provinces have spectacularly failed to collect agricultural taxes, these must be reverted to the federation and fixed federal income taxes imposed on agricultural land. The income from the first 10 acres should be exempted.
Divisions, districts and tehsils should be allowed to collect property taxes and sales tax on services. And 20% of all taxes collected by richer areas should be shared with poorer districts in the province (or nationally) that are excelling in improving performance in areas such as education, health and population control. This will ensure that rich areas like Karachi and Lahore share some of their revenues with poorer areas like Thar or Layyah or Awaran.
Finally, it has to be said that none of these reforms will work if people’s representatives aren’t elected freely and fairly to run the jurisdictions.
