THE new chief minister of Sindh, Murad Ali Shah, has pointed in the right direction when discussing the biggest challenges he sees for himself. But it remains to be seen how much of a force for change he can actually prove to be. In his inaugural speech in the provincial assembly, he mentioned the dismal state of human development in Thar and the neglect of civic obligations in Karachi as his big tests. But addressing these will require going against some of the most ingrained failures of his party. Karachi cannot be fixed if it continues to be run by the provincial government, and Thar`s condition will not get better if the ruling party does not take human development and improving the state of delivery across a range of services more seriously. In both areas, the PPP`s performance has proved to be grossly inadequate; whether or not Mr Shah can reverse this in the one full year of rule he has before the elections inspires justified scepticism.

Over the years, Sindh has become the favourite whipping boy of provincial governments in Pakistan. It has been an important ground for battles for power at the centre, and has been the site of the most vigorous opposition to military rule in the 1980s. Its place in the political struggles of the country, coupled with its own social structure, has forced successive chief ministers to rule the province while constantly looking over their shoulder for threats from unexpected quarters. An example of this is the mini-revolt led by Zulfiqar Mirza against former president Asif Zardari some years ago. Patronage politics plays hardball in the province. Lost amidst the mighty political contests that the province has been historically caught up in is a sense of governance as the primary deliverable of political power. Mr Shah needs to ensure that the machinery of the provincial government is not subordinated to the requirements of patronage, whether in wheat procurement, sugar pricing or service delivery as he balances the needs of the province`s political environment. This is a tall order for a new inductee, but Mr Shah has the benefit of his pedigree, high intelligence and energetic disposition to make a strong effort. Given the short time frame and stark challenges before him, he will need all the strength he can muster to actually walk the talk he laid out in his inaugural speech.