KARACHI: Federal Minister for Health Syed Mustafa Kamal on Saturday said that the formation of new provinces is not just anyone’s wish, but a vital necessity for Pakistan.
Delivering a speech in Karachi, the former mayor stated that establishing new provinces has become inevitable for securing and effectively running the country.
The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leader pointed out that all four existing provinces collectively received a whopping Rs8,844 billion, but this money failed to trickle down to the grassroots or village level.
He said that the provinces have failed to transfer powers and funds to local tiers of government, which remains the country’s biggest problem.
Highlighting the economic significance of the city, he said that Karachi is the revenue engine of the country, yet even 10 percent of its actual potential has not been tapped so far.
“It is not the IMF, but Karachi that will pull Pakistan out of its economic quagmire,” he remarked, adding that when a family grows in size, building new rooms is a necessity and not a sign of breaking up the household.
Punjab is larger than 180 countries in the world, and Sindh is larger than 175, Mustafa Kamal noted.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa is larger than 162 countries, while Balochistan is larger than 185, he added.
In comparison, Iran has 17 provinces, Afghanistan 37, and India 38, he said, reiterating that the formation of new administrative units has become inevitable.