Prime Minister’s Adviser on Political Affairs Rana Sanaullah said Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi’s remarks on new administrative units “made no sense”, as he “could not understand” what the minister intended to convey.
Speaking to Geo News, Sanaullah said Naqvi’s comments reflected his personal opinion and that it was up to the interior minister to explain what he meant by his statement.
“It is for Mohsin Naqvi to take responsibility for what he intended to say through his remarks,” the PM’s aide said.
The statement follows remarks by the interior minister, who said that Pakistan’s existing governance system had “collapsed” and was no longer capable of addressing the country’s challenges, and called for administrative reforms, including the creation of new administrative units.
Addressing the Pakistan Economic Summit in Islamabad on July 30, Naqvi said: “The system we are living under has collapsed. Problems cannot be solved through it.”
The interior minister said Pakistan would continue to face the same challenges over the next decade unless fundamental reforms were introduced.
Sanaullah, while stressing that the issue required constitutional and parliamentary deliberation, said he had listened to Naqvi’s speech but could not understand what he was trying to say.
“It appears he wanted to make a broader point by playing it down, but failed to express it properly. Once the statement was made, one part of what he said did not match another. I still do not understand what he was saying or why he said it,” he added.
The PM’s aide said the Constitution already provided the procedure for creating smaller provinces and administrative units, adding that parliament should hold a debate on the matter before any decision was taken.
He said the decision on creating new provinces or administrative units would ultimately be made by the party leadership, stressing that new provinces could not be established simply through public discussion.
Recalling the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government’s tenure in Punjab from 2013 to 2018, Sanaullah said his party had tabled a resolution on creating new provinces during that period.
“I personally moved both the resolution for establishing the commission and the resolution for creating two provinces in Punjab,” he said.
He said a national commission would need to be constituted to decide issues related to new provinces, including financial arrangements and other administrative matters.
The commission, he added, would also deliberate on representation in the National Assembly, provincial assemblies and the Senate.
Describing the issue as complex, Sanaullah said serious consultations among political stakeholders are necessary before any decision could be made.
He added that Pakistan could adopt either a system of smaller provinces, a strong local government system, or both, but maintained that political parties would have to make the final decision.
Sanaullah also questioned the relevance of Naqvi’s remarks about the prime minister working 18 hours a day in the context of the debate on administrative reforms, saying he failed to understand the purpose of linking the two issues.
‘No deadline from establishment for administrative units’
Speaking on Geo News programme “Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath”, Sanaullah dismissed reports that the establishment had set any deadline for creating new administrative units, saying “no deadline has been given and no such discussion has taken place,” while describing such claims as “stories and fabrications”.
Sanaullah said that PML-N President Nawaz Sharif instructed Naqvi not to respond further on the matter, adding that he also had serious objections to Naqvi’s tone and manner of speaking.
He said Naqvi had met the prime minister the previous day and believed the subject of his statement had come up during that meeting. “The prime minister can question any member of his cabinet,” Sanaullah said, adding that matters would become clearer after the cabinet meeting.
“If the system is not followed and then it is said that the system has collapsed, nothing will be achieved by saying that,” he said.
Naqvi ‘most powerful minister’
Separately speaking on Geo News‘ programme “Naya Pakistan”, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif said that Naqvi is “the most powerful minister” in the cabinet and is not answerable even to the prime minister in several matters.
Asif said that despite serving as the interior minister, Naqvi is not part of the government’s system. “I have seen Mohsin Naqvi at only two or three cabinet meetings,” the defence minister said.
Asif further claimed that Naqvi had attended parliament only seven or eight times since assuming office.
Commenting on Naqvi’s recent criticism of the system, Asif said that if the interior minister himself was complaining, “then we should simply go home.” –Agencies
