Seraikistan province

Even the most ardent supporters of newer provinces will not deny that the issue is rather complicated. With a tempestuous federation to begin with, the idea is to open another can of worms on an already open can of worms. The problems, be they ethnic, administrative, geological, economic, are too many to list here. In fact, even the spadework for beginning investigating what a new province would entail hasn’t begun yet.
What would one do about water, an already tenuous issue with an accord having been reached relatively late in the federation’s history? An accord which is already not being followed, allegedly, and one that is the source of much discontent. What about finance? The provinces managed to thrash out a consensus on the NFC after a gap of decades, that too, reportedly because the financial mismanagement of the incumbent Punjab government left the province in no position to veto its way out of a consensus; otherwise, the agreement would have been even later, or maybe it would never have been reached at all.
Imagine what would transpire if several layers of complexity were to be imposed on the present rickety balance between the federating units and the federation.
None of this should imply newer provinces should not be formed. If subnational aspirations resoundingly call for them, they should be. On another, non-ethnic premise: if units are unwieldy, they should be carved up for administrative ease and for reducing the distances between provincial capitals and the people.
But all this should be done after much thought has been given to the issues at hand. The president speech from the other day doesn’t imply that. The idea that the Seraikistan province will be formed before the general polls is problematic. There has obviously been no debate on the issue and the studies cannot possibly be done in time.
Whether the ruling coalition could even achieve the plan is a question, one that depends upon which areas a Seraiki province would include.
It is unreasonable to ask for political parties not to gain political mileage over any issue. All issues are political and everything can be milked for its worth. But this would be politicking over an issue that has extremely vast and long-lasting consequences. Short-term political gains should not merit such decisions. The PPP should desist from such irresponsible populism.