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KARACHI: With discussions on the 28th Amendment gaining momentum, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement\u2013Pakistan (MQM-P) has once again pressed its long-standing call for a new province in Sindh, unveiling plans for a public mobilisation campaign and legal steps to \u201csecure constitutional rights\u201d for urban residents.<\/p>\n
Addressing a press conference in Karachi along with the party’s top leadership on Thursday, MQM-P convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui warned that if parliament and the courts fail to deliver justice, the party would "take the struggle to the streets”.<\/p>\n
Discussions regarding the 28th Amendment are underway, with Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political and Public Affairs Rana Sanaullah saying that it would be tabled once a consensus is achieved. He added that the proposed amendment would relate to local bodies, the National Finance Commission (NFC) and health matters.<\/p>\n
Speaking to reporters, Siddiqui \u2014 who is also the federal education minister \u2014 said the demand for a new province is not MQM-P\u2019s alone but a "constitutional requirement”, citing Article 239 that allows the creation of new provinces and districts.<\/p>\n
"A province is an administrative unit \u2014 it must grow with population. This is the Constitution\u2019s demand, not MQM-P\u2019s,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
"Karachi\u2019s 17-year-long occupation must now end,\u201d he said, adding that Pakistan suffers from a "feudal democracy” where those who contribute "100% are denied even 1% authority”.<\/p>\n
He questioned Karachi\u2019s population figures and what the city "receives in return”, warning that the city\u2019s future was under attack, its master plan being converted \u201cinto corruption\u201d.<\/p>\n
Siddiqui also questioned whether those opposing new provinces in Sindh held the same position on Punjab. "Has the minister told whether he is against dividing Punjab as well?” he asked, while praising the Punjab Assembly for presenting Article 140-A.<\/p>\n
He reiterated MQM-P\u2019s commitment to resolving public issues, saying the party considered Pakistan as a mother and Sindh as its integral part. \u201cDevelopment\u2019s enemies are rejected,\u201d Siddiqui said, adding that the party would continue its struggle for empowered local governance and a fair administrative structure.<\/p>\n
The party convener also criticised efforts to curtail local governments, saying Karachi and Hyderabad\u2019s issues were being ignored despite MQM-P raising them in the assemblies and within the government.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe struggled for Karachi\u2019s master plan; we will continue to beautify and rebuild the city,\u201d he said, adding that the party supported full implementation of the 18th Amendment, including Article 140-A on empowered local governments.<\/p>\n
One political party, he further said, had opposed the MQM-P\u2019s stance on the 26th Amendment, insisting the party had set only one condition: \u201cGive people the constitutional rights already written for them.\u201d He added that the population of Karachi and its share in resources needed to be publicly acknowledged.<\/p>\n
Siddiqui also rejected claims that MQM-P steals credit for others\u2019 work. \u201cWe are not in the business of hijacking achievements,\u201d he remarked, adding that the party\u2019s MNAs and MPAs are monitoring ongoing development in Karachi.<\/p>\n
Sindh Governor Kamran Tessori, for his part, said the MQM-P had \u201cfought for Karachi and Hyderabad and secured the package\u201d, but argued that genuine relief would come only when the party "governs the province\u201d.<\/p>\n
He declared that he was \u201cfirst an MQM worker, then the governor\u201d, and vowed to ensure implementation of Siddiqui\u2019s demands. \u201cPeople are pleading \u2014 roads are broken, and no one listens,\u201d he also said.<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n