THERE have always been demands for the restoration of democracy during military dictatorships. And whenever, after a long struggle and sacrifices in terms of lives, limbs and livelihoods by the lower classes, the democracy is finally restored, the same warriors suffer the most.
The version of democracy we have in Sindh is a test case. What we have is actually dictatorship under the garb of democracy. The ruling party collects herds of sycophants comprising big and small landlords to run the provincial machinery, while dedicated party workers remain completely sidelined.
All decision-making positions are distributed among new entrants who mostly happen to be feudal lords and their scions who had been the ones persecuting workers and activists when the party was not in power. Moreover, the voters and workers cannot approach the so-called elected elite due to the iron-clad circle of influence erectedby the sycophants.
The public service delivery system has collapsed, and public resources and budgets are swallowed by mafias at different tiers of governance. The masses are reelingunder a repressive and unresponsive system. Protests have lost their relevance as there is no mechanism to redress the grievances. As for the accountability apparatus, it has been compromised through legislation.
There was some hope that the devolution of power to local governments would improve the level of governance and service delivery, but the local governments have proved worse because they are run by people elected on a party basis. All the ills of the provincial government have trickled down to union council (UC) level.
One fails to understand why those at the helm of provincial affairs in Sindh are bent on proving democracy as the worst form of governance in the country.
