HYDERABAD: It is the need of the hour to reform the system that has weakened Sindh and other provinces, restore provincial and local powers, protect resources, uphold merit and democracy and transfer authority to the people.

This was stated by Qaumi Awami Tehreek (QAT) president Ayaz Latif Palijo in a letter addressed to a section of media calling for new provinces in the country.

He conceded that Karachi faces problems of water shortage, poor infrastructure, unemployment, weak local bodies and corruption.

He said that most of the civic problems could be resolved without the need to create new provinces if local governments were given powers, held transparent elections, had adequate financial resources, a transparent system of accountability, and professional administration, along with accountability of elected representatives, in Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Lahore, Peshawar, Multan, Faisalabad and Quetta.

He said Sindh belonged to its permanent legal residents, and that Urdu-speaking, Baloch, Punjabi, Pakhtun, Seraiki, Muslim, Hindu, Parsi, Sikh, Christian and other communities were equal citizens. He said he was against linguistic division, not against any particular community.

He said Sindh had already experienced the One Unit era and the destruction of its historic identity, and any attempt today to divide Sindh on linguistic or political grounds would have national and social consequences.

Published in Dawn, September 17th, 2026