DEVOLUTION PLAN 2000

TABLE OF CONTENTS:

S.No 1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. 11. 12.

Page No. Abstract 2 Introduction 3 Devolution Plan By Pervaiz Musharraf 5 Musharrafs Seven Point Agenda 5 Five Fundamentals of Devolution Plan 6 5 Ds of Devolution 7 Objectives of the Devolution Plan 9 Features of the Devolution System 10 Issues and Challenges Faced in Implementation of the 11 Devolution Plan Recommendations 14 Conclusion 16 Personal View 17

CONTENTS

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ABSTRACT:
This article is meant for the fulfillment of the course work requirement for the Masters of Public Administration, as a mandatory component of LOCAL GOVERNMENT COURSE. The article focuses on the Devolution Plan presented by Pervaiz Musharraf in 2000. In 1999, Pervaiz Musharraf being the chief of army staff overthrew the government of the elected Prime Minister, Mian Muhammad Nawaz Sharif in a military coup and took over the administrative control of the country and imposed Martial Law for the fourth time in the history of Pakistan. This military regime introduced a plan which aimed at national reconstruction through devolution of powers and decentralization and establishing a local government system. This study is an overview of devolution in Pakistan introduced in 2001 with the election to local governments and promulgation of a local government ordinance. This study examines the existence of local government system in Pakistan and analyses the process of devolution by viewing its political, administrative, fiscal and development components. It highlights the challenges and issues faced in implementation of this plan and specify the extent to which its implementation succeeded in achieving the desired goals. Besides educational point of view, this article aims at providing an insight to what actually laid the foundation of this Devolution Plan, what were the objectives and how it played its role in success of Pakistan.

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INTRODUCTION:
Decentralization, or decentralizing governance, refers to the restructuring or reorganization of authority so that there is a system of co-responsibility between institutions of governance at the central, regional and local levels according to the principle of subsidiary (i.e. the local authorities will have the authority and responsibility to address all problems that are, in their determination, within their ability to solve), thus increasing the overall quality and effectiveness of the system of governance, while increasing the authority and capacities of sub-national levels. Devolution is a global phenomenon; it along with fiscal and administrative decentralization is the transfer of resources and power to lower level authorities, which are independent of higher levels of government and are somewhat democratic to a great extent. Countries across the world are adopting decentralization for two reasons basically: Maintenance of political stability More effective and efficient service delivery. Decentralization is expected to achieve higher economic efficiency, better accountability, and larger resource mobilization, lower cost of service provision and higher satisfaction of local preferences. According to this devolving resource allocation decisions to locally elected leaders can improve the match between the mix of services produced by the public sector and the preferences of the local population. Decentralization is expected to achieve higher economic efficiency, better accountability, and larger resource mobilization, lower cost of service provision and higher satisfaction of local preferences. According to this devolving resource allocation decisions to locally elected leaders can improve the match between the mix of services produced by the public sector and the preferences of the local population. Decentralization is thought to be particularly beneficial for rural development in disadvantaged jurisdictions. It usually entails a net transfer of fiscal resources from richer to poorer areas and leads to an increase in the quantity and quality of expenditures in these areas. Pakistans experiment in decentralization, termed devolution due perhaps to its political component, basically aims at bringing the abovementioned benefits to its population.
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After overthrowing the democratic government in 1999, the military government immediately announced a seven point agenda. This agenda aimed at focusing upon addressing the so called institutional crisis and to advance upon national reconstruction. The seven point agenda included the following: i) ii) iii) iv) v) vi) vii) Rebuilding national confidence & morale; Strengthening the federation while removing inter-provincial disharmony; Reviving and restoring investor confidence; Ensuring law and order and dispensing speedy justice; Depoliticizing state institutions; Devolving power to the grass root level; Ensuring swift and across the board accountability.

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THE DEVOLUTION PLAN 2000 BY PERVAIZ MUSHARRAF

MUSHARRAFS SEVEN POINT AGENDA:

I. Rebuild National confidence and morale We are not a poor nation as is generally perceived. In fact, we are rich. We have fertile land that can produce three crops a year. We have abundant water to irrigate these lands and generate surplus power. We have gas, coal, and vast untapped mineral resources and above all, dynamic and industrious people. All these await mobilization. We have! Only to awake, join hands and grasp destiny for Allah helps those who help themselves. II. Strengthen Federation, remove Inter-Provincial disharmony and restore National cohesion Cementing the federation is vital. This will be achieved through devolution of power, from the Centre to the .Provinces and from the Provincial to the local governments as actually enshrined in the Constitution. III. Devolution of power to the grass root level Our Government sees devolution as the first step towards the re-building and the restoration of the peoples faith in the Government of their own country. With this new concept of elected community governments, an unprecedented transfer of power will take place from the elite to the vast majority. The people themselves will become empowered to take charge of the foundation of democracy and of the system by which they are governed. IV. Revive Economy and restore Investor confidence He urged at the need of rebuilding of investor confidence through stability and consistency in economic policies and economic security. The objective is to encourage local investors, overseas Pakistanis and foreign investors: 1. Increase domestic savings 2. Carry out pragmatic tax reforms
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3. Turn around state enterprises towards profitability 4. Boost agriculture and revive industry 5. Strict austerity measures V. Ensure law and order and dispense speedy justice The basic ingredients to check corruption, I feel, are firstly developing strong institutions and systems, which avoid any discretionary authority and powers to anyone. Improving the qualities of law enforcement agencies is another area to check corruption. Sometimes you find yourself very helpless to deal with situations because your law enforcement agency is unable to deliver on whatever you are thinking, so therefore, the quality of law enforcement agencies is extremely important VI. Depoliticize State institutions The political structure we plan involves a trilateral distribution of responsibilities between the Centre, the Provinces and the district representing the basic (lowest) rung of democracy VII. Ensure swift and across the board accountability The process of accountability is being directed at those guilty of plundering and looting the National wealth, and tax evaders. It is also directed towards loan defaulters and those who have had their loans rescheduled or condoned. The process of accountability will be transparent for the public to see.

FIVE FUNDAMENTALS OF DEVOLUTION PLAN:

While addressing the cabinet meeting on after the takeover Chief Executive and Chief of Army Staff General Pervez Musharraf announced the decentralization through Establishment of National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB). National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) has been tasked for framing policies for national reenactment. The holistic approach of National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) was supposed to reconstruct state institutions across the entire fields of governance. The Local Government Plan 2000 was the first end product of National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB), which was designed on five fundamentals:
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Devolution of political power, Decentralization of administrative authority, Decentralization of management functions, Diffusion of the power-authority nexus and Distribution of resources to the district levels.

5 Ds OF DEVOLUTION PLAN

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This is known as Devolution Plan which was designed to meet the sincere aspirations of the people, to be self-governed and their rights could also be protected. It was expected that the new structure will create an empowering environment in which the communities could take part and the process of community participation in local government system would make the radical changes in the spectrum of national politics. The ultimate result of this plan was the promulgation of Local Government Ordinance 2000. The elections under this Local Government Ordinance 2000 were held in August 2001. The main feature of these elections was that they were contested on nonpartisan basis.

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OBJECTIVES OF DEVOLUTION PLAN:

Restructure the bureaucratic setup and de-centralize the administrative authority to the district level and below. Re-orientate administrative system to allow public participation in decision making. Facilitate monitoring of government functionaries by the monitoring committees of the local councils. Rationalize administrative structures for improving efficiency. Introduce performance incentive systems to reward efficient officials. Ensure functioning of the related offices in an integrated manner to achieve synergistic effect and improve service delivery. Eliminate delays in decision-making and disposal of business through enhanced administrative and financial authority of district and tehsil level officers. Improve administrative and financial management practices in the district and management controls over operational units. Redress grievances of people against maladministration through the office of Zila Mohtasib. The government functionaries will also be eligible to lodge complaints against the unlawful and motivated orders of the elected officials. Enable the proactive elements of society to participate in community work and development related activities.

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FEATURES OF THE DEVOLUTION SYSTEM:

In light of the Devolution Plan, the elections for the new local government system were held during December 2000 and September 2001. The Local Government Ordinance was promulgated in August 2001. Some of the features of this new local government system are: Removal of the district administration system, one of the last holdouts of the colonial order and creation of three countrywide levels of governments i.e. districts (Zila Councils headed by Zila Nazim), tehsils (taluqa in Sindh and town in City Governments, headed by Tehsil Nazim), and union councils (headed by Union Nazim). Placing locally elected leaders in charge of out-posted bureaucrats. Reserving of one-third of seats for women and other marginalized groups like peasants, workers etc. Providing local councils with the right to obtain information on departmental operations and to sanction non-performance. Allowing properly registered citizen groups to gain direct access to a proportion of the local councils development budgets. Creating a municipal entity responsible for maintenance and development of basic municipal services such as water, sanitation, streets, lighting, parks, and business regulation. Distribution of financial resources to local governments through formula based provincial fiscal transfers and decentralization of specified taxation powers to enable local governments to effect credible development and service delivery. Creation of city governments in the provincial capitals with the possibility of allowing others to join later. The division as an administrative tier will cease to exist. The institution of Citizen Community Boards has been created to enable the proactive elements of society to participate in community work and development related activities in both rural and urban areas.

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ISSUES AND CHALLENGES FACED IN IMPLEMENTATION OF DEVOLUTION PLAN:

Role & Responsibilities: The plan proposed no definite outline for the roles and responsibilities of Union, Tehsil/Taluka and District Level councilors and members of governmental setup. There were no definite set of responsibilities assigned to district/ Tehsil Nazims and councilors once they were elected for their said posts, which gave rise to frustration amongst them and resulted in non-deliverance of real spirit of the plan. Capacity: The elected members were not well equipped with knowledge, experience and skills. They were not well informed about the new system and the true objectives of the plan were not well communicated to them. Capacity has emerged as one of the very important constraints on the functioning of the system. Social Setup: The social setup of communities based on cast, tribes and families was the basic element of non-cooperation between the elected members of local government. At the same time, the expectations had been raised from the political set-up. This was aggravated by the fact that the elections were also seen as first step towards restoration of democracy in Pakistan under the military government. Continuity: At the time when the plan was introduced and the local government elections were conducted the question that loomed large in the minds of the elected representatives and the masses was regarding the continuity of this plan in the light of the history of local government in Pakistan. Such an environment of uncertainty was not very conducive for the smooth running of the system.

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Constraints to Work: The elected councilors did not belong to rich segment of the society hence delayed payments, stipends and transportation allowances hampered the speed and efficiency of work. Smooth working arrangements were not given much thought. Relationship between Three Tiers of Local Government: There is ambiguity in demarcation of roles between the three tiers of local government and distribution of development funds, which is creating confusion among the councilors thus leading to constrained relationships. Although the administration directly reports to the Councilors, many of them complain of helplessness in dealing with the bureaucracy. Relationship between Local, National & Provincial Governments: With the arrival of elected national & provincial governments, the civilian government announced development funds for the respective members without any consideration to the district governments. This was viewed as interference in the local government system and obviously created resentment for the local governments. An institution called the Local Government Commission (LGC) was to be established at provincial level as an oversight committee for the LGO on urgent basis. The purpose of the LGC was the resolution of disputes between districts, between provincial departments and district governments, or between District Nazims and District Ombudsman. However, these bodies established very late (2003) and did not perform the designated feature. Relationship between Councilors & Member Provincial Assemblies: The councilors especially at Union and Tehsil/Taluka level are under influence of MPAs which results in defeating the purpose of grass roots approach. Political Affiliations: Local Government Elections were held on non-party basis but the councilors elected had political affiliations and rivalry among the parties hampered the progress.
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Qualification Disjoint: There was a qualification disjoint between the literate and illiterate members, which hampered in smooth implementation of new system.

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RECOMMENDATIONS:
Although the local government system set up under the Devolution Plan has lost its significance today, the system could have been strengthened by considering the following set of recommendations: Government should have worked upon creating awareness amongst the people before implementation of this plan and before conducting local government elections in 2001. The government should have demonstrated the real political devolution by: Developing an acceptance level amongst the Provincial Governments regarding the Local Government Ordinance before implementing it fully. Holding local government elections on a party basis, with direct polls for district officials Refraining from imposing political discipline on local officials and misusing them for political ends such as partisan electioneering. The responsibilities and the roles of the elected members should have been clearly outlined with duties of each assigned in black and white. The mechanism of accountability should have been strong enough to restrict local Nazims and councilors from misusing their powers. District police should have been allocated more staff and resources. The overall mechanism of the flow of funds should have been smooth and unhampered. This would have maintained the motivation levels of the elected members. Devolution of fiscal and administrative powers to the local units should have been ensured by giving district government greater control over budgetary resources and increasing developmental allocations. Active involvement of the political government in the affairs of the local government should be avoided as this raises questions about the credibility of the system. Unless the state works at increasing the literacy rate the implementation of local government system could not be achieved.
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Through security reforms the policy makers should aim at delivery of justice through local government Link support for devolution to progress on police reforms and provide budgetary support and other assistance to improve service incentives and conditions and build capacity for investigation and prosecution functions. The extent of powers at district level for both civil servants and the elected representatives must be clearly defined. Both should be allowed to keep considerable check on each other to avoid any misuse of power.

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CONCLUSION:
The political ups and downs of Pakistan have marked the history of the country with a number of drawbacks. Country suffers greatly at the hand of political instability. Alternate democratic and military regimes give rise to uncertainty in the country. The policy makers and legislators have never really considered the nations well being as their prime objective. This insincerity has led to the current scenario where the country lacks any mature local government system essential to ensure success of the country. Each upcoming government puts aside all the initiatives of the previous regimes without considering their benefits for the overall societal betterment. This practice is the major reason behind the lack of political maturity within the country.

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PERSONAL VIEW:
It was claimed that the main objective of the introduction of this plan was to establish a true local democracy however, in reality it was aimed at legitimizing the military regime and to earn survival through winning the hearts of the people. It also gave birth to an idea amongst people that this devolution of power from federal unit to local level was an attempt to gain control over local units. Thus it was believed to be an under covered form of centralized administrative control with a label of devolution of power. The significance of local government system and devolution of power to the grass root level could not be undermined at any point. Currently local government systems prevail throughout almost all of the developed countries. One could rightly say that democracy in its true sense could not be achieved without the establishment of local government system. The local government system plays significant role in equipping people with handful of knowledge, experience and skills required for learning the lesson of governance. They are trained to handle affairs at higher levels. Through devolution of power people at local level get a chance to indulge in decision making. Their participation in governance increases and this bridges the gap between the government and the local people. The failure of the devolution plan of 2000 mainly contributes to the low levels of acceptance. The process of implementation of this plan underwent a lot of regression from the civil society. It was believed to be a mere attempt of providing a legitimized access of military powers to the local units so that the civil opponents of this regime could be displaced. If this decentralization of powers had been introduced with positive motives and the real essence of local government system had been considered while its implementation, this could have proved to be a milestone towards the success of the country.

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