Tag Archives: dictatorial

SDF urged MPs to reject dictator Musharraf’s undemocratic, repressive & discriminatory local govt ordinance

– MPAs urged to reject revival of LB system

HYDERABAD, Aug 11: The Sindh Democratic Forum (SDF) has appealed to the members of Sindh Assembly not to vote in favour of the ordinance promulgated about revival of the district government system in Sindh.

It urged MPAs to protect sanctity of their legislative power and defend the bill they had passed to get rid of a dictatorial system to divide Sindh.

It congratulated those legislators of Sindh Assembly who revived the commissioner system, adding that it was the time for every legislator to prove his loyalty to Sindh.

In a statement issued here on Thursday, the SDF alleged that the district government system was introduced by a dictator to hand over cities of Sindh to a specific group as independent administrative units. Under the system, a city of 20 million people was made a district while another city of Sindh was divided into four districts.

It said the commissioner system would ensure decentralisation of power and Karachi would come into its former position of five districts, which would ensure fair delivery of service to all, including minorities and other ethnic groups living in the metropolitan.

It criticised what it termed somersault of the government, saying that it revealed that the present government was so weak and baffled that it had succumbed to the pressure of killings in Karachi by a political group with terrorist outfit. The sons of Sindh were bewildered on the statement and actions of the person who was sitting in London, heading a political group and calling himself son of Sindh, but his actions were against the wishes and rights of Sindh.

It demanded that he should demonstrate his sincerity towards Sindh by denouncing Musharraf`s ordinance and should support the demand of Sindhis to restore five districts of Karachi and revival of Hyderabad district in its original position.

It supported the strike call for Aug 13 and requested all the people of Sindh to wear black armbands and demanded from the MQM leadership to denounce the Local Government Ordinance 2001 and demonstrate solidarity with the people of Sindh.

DEMONSTRATION: Activists of the Awami Tahreek, its women wing Sindhiani Tahreek, and students wing Sindhi Shagird Tahreek held a demonstration outside the press club here on Thursday to pay tribute to Zafar Ali Shah, Nabeel Gabol, Nawab Mohammad Yousuf Talpur, Ms Humera Alwani, Nawaz Chandio, Ayaz Amir and Hakeem Baloch for their courageous stand on the local bodies issue.

Speaking on the occasion, the leaders said that the PPP had committed treachery and treason with Sindh just to prolong its rule.

They said that by abolishing commissioner system throughout Sindh and restoring the local bodies system of the dictator, the PPP was trying to appease an ethnic terrorist organisation.

Those legislators who had raised their voice with the people of Sindh were true sons of the soil, they said and expressed the hope that other MNAs and MPAs would also emulate their brave and courageous colleagues.

JST: In view of the strike call given by the Sindh Bachayo Committee for Aug 13 throughout Sindh, the Jeay Sindh Tahreek has postponed its protest rally scheduled to be held in Karachi on Aug 15.

In a joint statement faxed to Dawn here on Thursday, the president JST, Dr Safdar Sarki and others said that the Aug 15 rally by the party had been postponed to ensure the success of the strike called for Aug 13. They called upon the party workers to fully participate in the strike call.

They paid tribute to Zafar Ali Shah, Nawab Yousuf Talpur, Mir Nadir Magsi, Ms Humera Alwani and Ms Sassui Palijo other brave sons and daughters of Sindh for taking a brave and courageous stand against the local bodies` issue.

They pledged to foil all anti-Sindh conspiracies through practical struggle.

Courtesy: → DAWN.COM

Making the hard decisions to set our house in order

By Najmuddin A Shaikh

Last week, I had expressed hope that in the coming days we would make the hard decisions needed to prevent our country from sliding into anarchy and chaos. We would not then remain the country to which Muammar Qaddafi would point as an example of what could happen to Libya if his dictatorial regime was brought to an end.

Developments during the past week have not, to say the least, been encouraging. First we had the budget, in which no genuine effort seems to have been made to raise the tax base or to address impediments — energy shortages among others — and yet we have concluded that our deficit will remain under control and that growth will have an upward trajectory. Are we going to continue to go down the path of foreign aid dependency and have a government ‘of the elite by the elite and for the elite’ that taxes the poor and the now dwindling middle class mercilessly to nourish the ‘fat cats’ in the ranks of the bureaucracy and the political establishment? Can we not levy direct taxes that would bring the tax-to-GDP ratio to at least 15 per cent? Can we not spend more on education and health? Can we not stop treating the defence budget as beyond question? …

Read more : The Express Tribune