Naqvi vows not to back down from demand for new provinces, says decision must reflect public will

Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi says he will not abandon his call for new provinces, even if he leaves office. But he urged politicians and the public not to react emotionally, stressing that the change would not happen immediately.

“Whether I remain in office or not, I will not back down from this,” Naqvi said at the National Policy Dialogue in Lahore. He argued that the will of the people should carry more weight than the preferences of those in power.

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Whether I remain in office or not, I will not back down from this.

Naqvi said new administrative units could help ensure more balanced development across Pakistan. He questioned whether Punjab, Sindh, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan had other cities with the same administrative and economic significance as Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar and Quetta.

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Do not get emotional about the issue. This is not something that is going to happen tomorrow or the day after.

“If new administrative units are necessary for the betterment of the people, and the people also want them, then there should be no obstacle to their creation,” he said. He added that any new provinces would have to be created within the Constitution, and that the public should first receive information about the advantages and disadvantages before deciding.

The minister also clarified earlier remarks in which he called for a “reset.” “It never meant breaking the administrative system. I was talking about course correcting the system that has failed to deliver in 79 years,” he said. Naqvi argued that governments routinely approve new districts and tehsils but resist devolving power to them.

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If new administrative units are necessary for the betterment of the people, and the people also want them, then there should be no obstacle to their creation.

He said Pakistan is now the world’s fifth most populous country, yet basic services remain unavailable to every citizen. Education, healthcare, drinking water and access to justice, he said, should be available to everyone. Governments and policies change, he added, but the country’s delivery remains questionable despite its resources. The supplied article ends while he is discussing mayors Mamdani, Sadiq Khan and Erdogan.

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It never meant breaking the administrative system. I was talking about course correcting the system that has failed to deliver in 79 years.