Creation of New Administrative Provinces Essential for Resolving Public Issues — MQM Punjab Secretary General Karamat Ali Sheikh

Lahore (Nazrana Times) —
 

Muttahida Qaumi Movement (Pakistan) Punjab Secretary General Karamat Ali Sheikh has emphasized that to effectively address the immediate problems faced by Pakistan’s over 250 million citizens, it is imperative to establish more administrative provinces. He proposed that a new clause, 140-A, concerning the formation of new provinces, should be included in the 27th Constitutional Amendment.
He stated that local government elections must be conducted before national and provincial assembly elections to strengthen grassroots democracy. Despite the allocation of NFC (National Finance Commission) awards to provinces, PFC (Provincial Finance Commission) funds are not being properly utilized at the district level. This, he said, has deepened a sense of deprivation in South Punjab, where people continue to struggle for clean drinking water, education, healthcare, and employment. The deteriorating road infrastructure, he added, has led to frequent accidents and tragic loss of lives.
Karamat Ali Sheikh noted that South Punjab, which contributes 70% of Pakistan’s agricultural output and plays a crucial role in sustaining the national economy, now faces a severe agricultural decline. He stressed that the progress of developed nations lies in their efficient administrative units, which empower local governance and enable timely solutions to citizens’ problems — a model Pakistan must follow.
“In our system, an ordinary citizen or a government employee traveling from Sadiqabad to Lahore to resolve an issue spends three days’ salary, while the poor citizen falls deeper into debt,” he remarked.
He further revealed that 90% of South Punjab’s development budget remains unspent, depriving the region of much-needed growth. Therefore, he urged that new provinces should be established on administrative grounds without delay, to ensure equitable development and governance across Pakistan.