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Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization

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Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization A Dialogue with Political Parties on Future of Federalism and Democratic Devolution in Pakistan Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Introduction On August 1st, 2013, the Centre for Civic Education in Pakistan (CCEP) and United Nations Development Program (UNDP) organized a dialogue with Pakistan's mandate-bearing political parties on the “Future of Federalism and Democratic Devolution in Pakistan”. The main objectives of the dialogue were: 1. To understand political parties perspectives and positions on federalism and democratic devolution 2. To seek ideas from political parties as how to optimize the dividends of the 18th Constitutional Amendment 3. To understand the perspectives and plans of provincial governments on deepening local democracy through local governments. All mainstream political parties that earned mandate during Election-2013 were invited. Historically, democratic political demands and developments in Pakistan have revolved around the questions of provincial autonomy, control/management of natural resources and equitable sharing of nation's wealth among the federation and its constituent units. Having been founded as a federation in 1947, Pakistan's history has been marked by periods of authoritarian rule and by centralized administration, even during periods of democratic government. A strong demand from all quarters, especially from provincial political leaders, for 'true federalism' resulted in the passage of the 18th Constitutional Amendment which has been described by Senator Raza Rabbani as the “most comprehensive restructuring of the federal and provincial administration since 1947”. However, the implementation of this potentially reforming constitutional amendment has not been without significant challenges, making an exploration of points of policy convergence imperative to its success. The timing of this consultation is also made crucial by the 2013 Elections in Pakistan which have brought new and diverse stakeholders to the forefront in every federating unit. 1 Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Summary The conference was attended by representatives from most mainstream political parties that earned mandate in the elections of 2013, government functionaries, civil society representatives, academia, technical experts and development partners. As the dialogue was held in the last week of Ramadan, a traditional time for Muslims to travel to Saudi Arabia to perform Umrah, some guests such as representatives from the ruling party Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) were not able to attend. Various ideas about strengthening federalism and improving devolution came to the forth in the dialogue. Equitable sharing of energy resources in the light of the constitution is clearly an important concern, shared by most political parties represented. Three of the speakers Mr. Taj Haider of PPP, Mr. Haji Adeel of ANP and Shehryar Afridi of Tehreek-e- Insaf referred to the Article 158 of the Constitution of Pakistan which states “The Province in which a well-head of natural gas is situated shall have precedence over other parts of Pakistan in meeting the requirement from that well-head, subject to the commitments and obligations as on the commencing day”. Speakers from Khyber Pakthunkhwa commented on the high price of electricity that they are forced to pay once the electricity generated is put into the national basket. Jan Muhammad Achakzai, the spokesperson for Jamiat Ulema-e- Islam (JUI), specifically spoke of the small percentage of electricity produced by Khyber Pakhtunkhwa which is returned to the province and at a much higher price than the cost at which it is produced. Mr. Usman Kakar representing the Pakhtunkhwa Mili Awami Party commented on the recent move by the Federal Government to purchase electricity from China saying that this decision has been made ignoring Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's ability to produce enough cheap electricity to be supplied to the whole country. Similarly Shoukat Yousafzai, representative from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and current Minister for Information and Health in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, also spoke of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's energy woes saying that Islamabad's recently announced energy policy has ignored Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's demand for ownership of electricity 2 Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization distribution in the province. He also demanded that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's ability to provide cheap electricity to industry be used to attract investment in the province. In addition to demanding that the distribution of electricity should be devolved to the provinces, speakers from Sindh argued that Sindh should have the first right over the electricity produced in the province. Economic devolution was another concern that was shared by most speakers. Dr. Farooq Sattar demanded a greater control over taxation for the provinces. A number of speakers also called for the devolution of the Employees Old Age Benefits Institute (EOBI) as well as of Worker's Welfare fund. It was further demanded that assets that have been devolved to the provinces should be handed over to increase capacity. It was recommended that the new government should demonstrate its commitment towards strengthening of federalism in Pakistan by constituting a parliamentary committee to oversee the process of devolution in Pakistan. Mr. Taj Haider also suggested the establishment of a Federal Constitutional Court to monitor the federal decisions made by the federal government. The importance of keeping the Council for Common Interests (CCI) an active body was also shared amongst the speakers. On the issue of Local Government most speakers pressed for the need to develop a law for local government. MQM revealed to the participants a draft for such a law prepared by the party. Dr. Farooq Sattar discussed his party's vision for local government that goes beyond dealing with municipality issues to become 'engines for growth' in the 21st century. Bushra Gohar from the Awami National Party argued that local body elections should be party based and it should be ensured that elections take place in Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) as well. Finally, most speakers expressed a deep concern for the future of the federalism in Pakistan which they perceived as being under threat by centralist forces. Proceedings: The dialogue began with opening remarks from the Executive Director of the Centre for Civic Education Pakistan (CCEP), Mr. Zafarullah Khan who welcomed the participants on the behalf of the CCEP and thanked the UNDP for their support in organizing the event. Mr. Khan touched upon the importance of the timing of this dialogue saying that since the elections, new players have emerged in Pakistan and it would be extremely valuable to understand their perspectives on the issue of federalism and democratic devolution in Pakistan. He added that the topic of devolution and democracy was important to citizens as consumers of democracy. Referring to a recent ruling by the Supreme Court ordering the making of Local Governments Law, he underlined the importance of hearing the perspective of political parties on this important issue of judicialization of reforms. Marc- André Franche, Country Director for UNDP in Pakistan expressed his happiness at having the opportunity to hear from political parties on the important issue of democratic devolution and federalism. He said that this event was part of UNDP's plan to organize many such events, which would help in creating an understanding of the contours of this subject, encouraging intergovernmental dialogue and enhancing accountability. Mr. Franche added that as a French Canadian, he is someone who truly understood the value of federalism, and considers the passage of the 18th Amendment to be a victory for Pakistan and an important historical development. 3 Strengthening Participatory Federalism and Decentralization Jan Muhammad Achakzai, the spokesperson for JUI was the first to speak from the side of the political parties. Mr. Achakzai described the passage of the 18th Amendment as a watershed in the Pakistan's history, which represented a consensus over how the country could move from centralization towards devolution. Discussing the pressing issue of energy sharing and resource mobilization, he argued that the 18th amendment had come up with a deficient formula for sharing electricity and other minerals. He pointed out that many countries, like Thailand, share energy resources in a way that the provinces get three times the share of the centre. Mr. Achakzai highlighted the grievances of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Sindh with regards to energy resource sharing. He pointed out that Khyber Pakhtunkhwa produces around 4000 MW of electricity of which it only got 1100 MW back once it is put in the national basket. On top of that, he added, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is forced to pay the same price for electricity as the rest of the country despite its ability to produce it for much cheaper than other provinces. In this regard, he argued, that the 18th amendment could do a lot more. The second aspect of the 18th amendment that Mr. Jan Achakzai discussed was Local Government. He pointed out that while politicians did not wish to disagree with devolution, they had bad memories associated with the system which had been abused in the past, resulting in reluctance in its proper implementation. He summed up his speech by saying that much had been achieved by the
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