Devolution: Khawaja Asif says power-sharing reform is inevitable

ISLAMABAD: Devolution of power is “inevitable”, Defence Minister Khawaja Asif has said, questioning what he described as the Pakistan Peoples Party’s (PPP) “contradictory position” on creating new provinces and administrative units.

Mr Asif said the 18th Amendment had already established devolution as a constitutional principle, but successive governments had failed to implement it in its true spirit.

He said Pakistan could either create additional provinces or reorganise its existing administrative structure, including through its 36 divisions. The key issue, he argued, was to reduce the concentration of power under the current system.

“When there is talk of a Saraiki province in Punjab, the PPP supports it or shows a soft corner on this issue. And when there is talk of multiple provinces or administrative units instead of four, talk of ‘Sindhudesh’ begins,” he said in a post on X late on Friday.

Defence and Martyrs Day Pakistan honours martyrs and Ghazis on September 6

His comments followed the Sindh Assembly’s decision to prevent the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) from presenting a resolution against the “Sindhudesh movement”. The PPP criticised the MQM-P, accusing it of trying to “mislead the people” by introducing the resolution.

Mr Asif said he believed there was “something else” behind what he called the PPP’s “dual policy”, adding that he would discuss the matter further “when the time comes”.

“We are first and foremost Pakistanis. Devolution was decided as a constitutional principle through the 18th Amendment, which was not respected. Time and circumstance demand that it be implemented with integrity,” he said.

He argued that the excessive concentration of power had made the existing system obsolete and called for structural changes.

“Provinces or administrative units, whatever label you want to apply. You have 36 divisions, use them, or devise some other administrative-geographical scheme. The devolution of power is inevitable,” he said.

The remarks came as the PPP, a key ally in the PML-N-led coalition government, questioned Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s silence on the debate over new provinces and asked him to clarify his position.

The PPP has previously said that any move to create additional federating units must follow the procedure prescribed by the Constitution. However, the PPP-led Sindh government recently secured the passage of a provincial assembly resolution opposing any further division of Pakistan’s existing four provinces.

The debate over new provinces and administrative units has intensified in political circles over the past several months, although the government has not officially confirmed the details or scope of any proposal.

Several ruling-party leaders and federal cabinet members have nevertheless expressed support for administrative restructuring at different forums, including parliament.

Sindh Senior Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon on Saturday criticised Mr Asif’s remarks, describing them as disappointing and asking the federal government to clarify whether they represented official policy or the minister’s personal view.

Mr Memon said statements by federal ministers amounted to political aggression against Sindh and urged Mr Asif to study the province’s history, the Constitution and parliamentary records before commenting on Sindh and the PPP.

He maintained that the PPP’s position was neither contradictory nor ambiguous, but “clear, principled and constitutional”.