The base of the pyramid
The 2001 Local Government Ordinance called for the devolution of the government down to the district levels. This meant that districts, which are essentially sub-divisions formed within each of the four provinces in Pakistan, would function under District Coordination Officers (DCO). This decentralisation of power in many ways was meant to press the fast forward button on progress and stability.
In theory, what this is meant to do is empower the districts so that they can not only implement the government mandate, but also find opportunities for growth and improvement on their own. However, in Pakistan’s history democratic governments have typically hissed at the idea of local government (LG) polls and tried to avoid them to the best of their capabilities.
Unsurprisingly, the recent location government elections have taken hold of Pakistan. Despite there being much fanfare over the subject, the question of whether the people even understand what implications they hold surfaced repeatedly.
People from the working middle class, who contribute heavily to the country itself would benefit greatly if they were more involved in things such as the LG polls, but do they even know where to begin?
Aisha Rahman, a registered voter from Karachi, thinks devolution was a great concept, with a terrible execution. “So my understanding of local government polls is that it basically devolves powers to the district level. While I do think the intention behind this plan is to solve problems at the district level, there are some concerns about the transparency of these polls, competence of the elected local government, and whether their activities will be supported or obstructed by members of the parliament and national assembly,” she said.
Rahman’s viewpoint reflects information that has been oft repeated through media. When asked how she feels the LG polls could affect her she dismissed the idea. “No, they don’t affect me,” she said and added: “I’m apprehensive about their effectiveness and I don’t think the middle class has much to benefit from them in any case.”
In Pakistan, elections are viewed with much distrust. Irrespective of who wins and who loses, cries of foul play and rigging haunt each democratic government that is sworn into power. “I don’t think such elections can be fair,” Rahman said dismissively. “It’s mostly just another game of who gains power,” she added.
‘These polls make up the base of the state’s administrative pyramid and the whole structure would come crumbling down if they cease to be. Without a strong base, we as a nation will, in this rabid race for survival, be eliminated’
While Aisha had a fairly decent idea of what the LG polls are all about, many others have no clue what they are even about.
Moiz Khan, an advertiser from Islamabad, has no real idea of what goes on during the LG polls. “I only got to know about them because of a friend’s brother, who contesting for a chairman position. He talks about how he has to go from village to village to win votes, he has a lot of jalsas we well,” he said.
Khan doesn’t have much hope attached to the process. “In my opinion, there is a huge gap of equality that we need to address before we even think about getting the people to vote on something. The current government just feels like another Godfather movie,” he said sarcastically.
Candidates that win during such elections can do a lot to bring about change in the areas that they represent. Khan feels that the disconnect between the contestants and the voters does not help. “I’ve heard that the candidates who win will get budgets to spend in their area. However, the kind of people who will vote for them are illiterate or not particularly well informed. So the candidate may have one set of demands, but the needs of the area may be entirely different,” he said.
“I guess there is a reason why people like us don’t get to know about this,” he added.
On being asked how he feels the LG polls could affect him, Khan’s response was no different than that of Rahman. “One can only hope that they do, but realistically there is a big flaw in the democratic system and I don’t feel this would help much,” he said un-optimistically.
While some have little to no understanding of what goes on during the elections, others are better versed. “What do I know about the poll?” asked Eram Bukhari, an advertising professional from Lahore, before answering: “The local government lies at the bottom of the pyramid of the governmental institutions and is basically a public organisation with its own territory, budget, employees, etc. It has specific powers and a certain degree of autonomy,” she said.
“Through the local government, dealing with the average citizens is made easier as well as working for their communities directly with the national representatives working with national level policies and legislations. Since the LGs are responsible for community work, they are directly involved with development projects and those of economic, environmental, social and cultural importance,” she added.
Unlike others who see no point behind such polls, Eram is a bit more positive. “The LG polls, for me, are of utmost importance because of a few reasons,” she asserted.
“These polls make up the base of the state’s administrative pyramid and the whole structure would come crumbling down if they cease to be. Without a strong base, we as a nation will, in this rabid race for survival, be eliminated. Hence, it is important that the citizens connect with the government and take and support initiatives. To hold these polls means a step towards prosperity and better administration on a macro-level,” she said.
For the middle class, nothing could be more important, Eram feels. “The polls further favour the masses on a personal level as they encourage the local voter to approach local bodies without hassles and resolve complaints without wasting much time. It is local representation that affects the working and non-working class in a positive way — according to democratic norms as it provides,” she said.
No democratic system is complete without the involvement of the people that it is meant to affect. Tahir Shabbir, Director PhotoNews feels that LG polls are democracy in its truest form. “This is grassroots level democracy,” he said.
“The job of the federal and provincial legislatures is precisely that i.e., to legislate. Solving the constituents problems is squarely the area that the DCO should be responsible for,” he added.
Shabbir feels that LG polls provide people an opportunity to make real decisions that affect them – through their vote. “As a layman I will vote for the legislatures as par my own ideology. I could be centre right or left, or be at an extreme, and I’d be able to steer my country in that specific direction. But when it comes to my own home and my area, the roads that need repairs, the streetlights, the water and drainage system. I would trust my area DCO to get the job done far more than a legislator,” he said.
There is also the problem of MPAs and MNAs not being accessible to the general public, not in the way a DCO could be. “As a member of the urban middle class, I can safely say that whatever problems I face, the likelihood of me gaining access to the MPA/MNA of my area is a virtual impossibility. And the idea that they would actually try and make a difference to my life is out rightly farcical,” Shabbir said. “But I would be comfortable talking to my area in-charge since that person would be someone I see as ‘one of us’,” he added.
Ali Sajid Imami, a systems engineer from Multan, felt that the polls although relevant, are largely invisible. “Personally, they are largely inefficient and invisible to me. In the markets though, they are still relevant, especially because they get funding that is small enough that the government graft is not big enough and some of it at least reaches the local people. I’ve seen the work of the 2002 LGs and while not outstanding it was at least a step in the right direction,” he said.
‘They are relevant to the working middle class since they are basically at the exact level you’d want many problems to be solved. A very close-to-the-ground level. But for that, the middle class will have to get involved itself’
But what of the working middle class? “They are relevant to the working middle class since they are basically at the exact level you’d want many problems to be solved. A very close-to-the-ground level. But for that, the middle class will have to get involved itself,” he warned.
“They shouldn’t expect LG polls to suddenly make things better, or newer people to contest the elections if they are not taking an active part and since this is a very small level, they’d see the results much sooner and in much more concrete terms,” he added.
The crux of the problem at the end of the day goes far beyond the government’s unwillingness to stop fearing what LG polls can do to their powers. It’s the fact that people at large do not understand why they should care. Danial Shah, a content writer, points out why this is happening in Pakistan, despite it being a democratic country. “There isn’t enough information. I mean I don’t know what on earth they are even about. When they happened in Karachi all I read about was that Imran Khan was going to destroy the MQM candidate, and that Altaf Hussain bought jewellery for the PTI chief’s wife,” he said disapprovingly.
“At no point did I understand how it was relevant to me what their tussle was about. Then the same thing happened during the recent elections. We heard a lot about rigging and not enough about why we need to care about the elections to begin with — voter turnout is a real problem in this country,” he added.
“It just seems like a rat race, and all the coverage makes me want to not pay attention and tune the noise out anyway… and I’m a writer!” he exclaimed and added, “Imagine how other people feel!”
If people understood the power of the LG polls then the likelihood is that they would care more for them. That is ironically the very reason they are so feared by most democratic governments in Pakistan, the leaders of whom want to retain power instead of letting it slip away through devolution. Little do they know, they have nothing to worry about — people don’t know their power anyway.