Govt tussle cripples MCI

Islamabad : A political tussle between the local (Islamabad) leadership of the ruling party, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and the elected Mayor of Municipal Corporation Islamabad (MCI), who is a staunch Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) stalwart, has badly affected the working environment in the MCI as well as the Capital Development Authority (CDA).

The efforts by the local PTI leadership led by the MNA Ali Nawaz Awan, to oust the elected-Mayor of MCI, Sheikh Ansar Aziz, from office have only caused bad blood and hampered the development and maintenance work.

The elected mayor is being embroiled in legal entanglements and spending most of his time in the courts to save his seat in office. He was ousted from his office on the recommendation of the Local Government Commission part of ICT-LGA 2015, established in haste and the locally elected MNA Ali Nawaz Awan, nominated its Chairman.

Interestingly, while the Local Government Commission was established almost in urgency, the Islamabad Capital Territory, Local Government Act 2015, even after lapse of five years has not been actualized and implemented as yet.

However, the recommendation for his suspension was restrained by the Islamabad High Court. But this did not stop his opponents to press further and he was suspended again by the Commission through a decision on a holiday and it was implemented, making headlines in the media.

Sheikh Ansar Aziz again approached the court against the decision as he filed an appeal in the Islamabad High Court (IHC) and once again the IHC restrained the orders. The Commission made yet another attempt as it filed an ‘Intra Court’ appeal in the IHC, which, once again, was set aside by the court.

One wonders why the Local Government Commission was so desperate to get rid of the sitting mayor, who was elected to the office through fair means? Apparently the mayor is discharging his duties in accordance with the powers invested in him under the relevant laws.

It may sound unfortunate but evidently the desire to remove Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz has become so overwhelming for his opponents, which is the local leadership of PTI led by MNA Ali Nawaz Awan, it has become almost vengeful. And to meet their ends they are not shy of even exploiting the top administration both in the Islamabad Capital Territory Administration (ICTA) as well as the CDA.

On the other hand, one feels that the Commission, instead of optimizing performance of the MCI and Local Government System for the welfare of people of Islamabad and playing its role as a bridge between the Federal Government and Local Government, apparently been trying to discredit the Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz. And there one cannot help but feel that there are political motives behind all such efforts because Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz is from PML-N and has always been believed to be ‘very close’ Mian Nawaz Sharif.

If one may look not too distant in the past, the PTI, when it came into power for the first time in the Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa (KP) it implemented the local government most effectively. In fact it was the implementation of the LG system and famous ‘Police Reforms’ which became the basis for the PTI to return to rule KP for the second time in a row, something unprecedented in the past.

Why the PTI leaders are shy of supporting and promoting the LG system in Federal Capital from where they have won both the seats, Urban and Rural, in the national elections? The ruling party could have replicated the ‘KP Formula’ of LG system to further gain popularity in Islamabad and strengthen their political position at grass roots level.

Instead, evidently, they locked horns with MCI, headed by the Mayor Sheikh Ansar Aziz, who is known to be ‘very close’ to the former prime minister Mian Nawaz Sharif.