JI petitions the SHC to reject the ‘unelected’ mayor amendment.
Accusing the PPP of “negative tactics,” Rehman raises How did Rs8 billion disappear from Sindh’s development budget?
The Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) filed an appeal with the Sindh High Court (SHC) on Wednesday in Karachi, challenging the constitutionality of a recent modification to the Local Government Act that would allow for the appointment of mayors without popular vote.
In the appeal presented through Advocate Usman Farooq, the JI is alleged to have argued that the local body elections were conducted in accordance with the Primary Local Body Act 2013, under which the chairperson or mayor candidates in question swore their oath.
They said that the new law allowed for mayors to be appointed rather than elected.
The petition argued that, in accordance with the spirit of the Local Government Act, the mayor should be selected from among the elected representatives, and that the Constitution’s Articles 90–93 and 129–131 detail the respective organizational structures of the federal and provincial governments.
It went on to say that it was against the Constitution and local government acts to appoint someone who hadn’t been elected mayor.
Prior to next week’s mayoral election, the JI argued that the notification provided on May 24 for the recent revision should be ruled invalid.
Outside the SHC, JI leader Hafiz Naeemur Rehman spoke to the media, where he accused the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) of “negative tactics,” saying that the PPP had said the mayor of Karachi would not receive financing if he did not belong to the PPP.
Rehman claimed he went to the SHC for a major issue and questioned if the city was their domain.
The contentious law that permits anyone to become chairman or mayor without being a member of the council was passed by the Sindh Assembly on the basis of its majority on June 15. He said that passing such legislation so close to a mayoral election undermined public trust in the democratic process.
According to the Local Government Act, the candidate must be a member of the council, and the JI has joined the election for council members in order to comply with this law, as stated by the JI’s leader.
He went on to say that a lot of energy was wasted running for the union committee, and that it was unfair to bring in someone from outside the group. He continued by saying that the legislature made things easier for a particular party’s candidate.
According to Rehman, the law was passed in May and will take effect in December of 2021. He steadfastly insisted that laws “according to the desire of the PPP” would be rejected.
“According to the election rules, there is no obstacle to the success of the candidate of Jamaat-e-Islami,” he claimed.
Rehman demanded an explanation from ex-president Asif Ali Zardari, who he said “had become an economic expert,” as to the whereabouts of the Rs8 billion development money for Sindh.
The Karachi Medical and Dental College (KMDC) pays its house officer Rs45,000 per year, although the Sindh Medical Officer earns more. He claimed that the system was being run with a “video mentality.”
Democracy will not be crushed any longer,” Rehman declared.
People should look at the predicament of the city’s hospitals “at the hands of those who claim to fix the country’s economy,” he said, referring to the fact that MRI machines at Abbasi Hospital are damaged even as money is being provided for advertising.
In addition, “the problems of municipal atrocities in the city are not discussed,” he said.
