Local Govt Systems Of Pakistan And Malaysia

Outline
• Introduction
• Malaysia
o Historical background
• Pakistan
o Historical background
• Comparison
• Conclusion
 Introduction
The local govt system of both countries has British legacy. local govts play pivotal role in
democracies. Both countries are in this regard has similarity as local govt is third and important
tier of the government. Local govt is responsibility of states in Malaysia and provinces in
Pakistan. local govt department supervise the activities of the system. Functions and
responsibilities are almost same, but the Malaysian system depends on the govt side because
there is no concept of election. Councilors are nominated by the govt and can be reappointed.
tenure in Malaysia is 3 years and in Pakistan it is four years. on the other side in Pakistan
elected representatives play an important role and govt officers and officials are responsible to
carry the decisions of them.
Both countries local government has a power to collect taxes, create laws and rules “in the form
of by-laws” and certificates and licenses. In addition to it providing basic amenities, collecting
and managing waste and garbage.
Local government system in both countries is divided into rural and urban.
 Malaysia
The local government in Malaysia is the lowest tier of government
in Malaysia administered under the states and federal territories which in turn are beneath
the federal tier. Local governments are generally under the exclusive purview of the state
governments as provided in the Constitution of Malaysia, except for local governments in
the federal territories. The federal Ministry of Housing and Local Government plays a role in
coordinating and standardizing the practices of local governments across the country.
Local government has the power to collect taxes (in the form of assessment tax), to create laws
and rules (in the form of by-laws) and to grant licenses and permits for any trade in its area of
jurisdiction, in addition to providing basic amenities, collecting and managing waste and
garbage as well as planning and developing the area under its jurisdiction.
Local governments are usually referred to as local authority (Malay: pihak berkuasa tempatan,
abbreviated PBT), headed by a civil servant with the title President (Yang Di-Pertua) for rural
districts and municipalities, and Mayor (Datuk Bandar) for cities, though there are a few
exceptions in the form of "special and modified local authorities". Councilors are appointed by
the state governments.
Local government areas are distinct from the districts, which are mainly for land
administration purposes. In rural areas, the jurisdiction area of local governments largely
corresponds to the district boundaries. However, in urbanised areas, local government areas
may not be consistent with the district boundaries and may overlap with adjoining districts, as
municipal or city boundaries usually do not conform to district boundaries.
 Historical background
The government system in Malaysia was a legacy of British colonization, with many of its laws
derived from and modelled on English laws. However, with the passing of times, many local
unique social and cultural characteristics have influenced the working of the local governments
in Malaysia.
Early development
The British in 1801 established a Council of Assessors in Penang, charged with the role of
planning and developing the municipality area, and was the basis of local government in the
then Malaya (present-day Peninsula Malaysia). After Penang, local councils were established
beginning with Malacca, followed by the Federated and the Unfederated Malay States, finally
extending to the Kingdom of Sarawak and North Borneo. Laws were promulgated to govern the
establishment of local authorities and the organization of local council elections. One of the
important laws was the Local Government Election Ordinance 1950 that entrusted local councils
to organize elections for the office of councilors—people that govern local areas. Another law
was the Local Government Ordinance 1952 which empowered local residents to establish local
councils in their area wherever necessary. Prior to Malaya's independence from the British in
1957, there was a total of 289 units of local council in Malaya. The constitution of the new
country after independence from Britain gave the power to control local governments to the
states.
The 1960s was a challenging time for local authorities in Malaya. They faced many problems
regarding internal politics and administration. In addition, the Indonesian confrontation against
the formation of Malaysia in 1963 has forced the federal government to suspend local council
elections in 1965. The suspension was made by means of emergency law namely the
Emergency (Suspension of Local Government Elections) Regulations 1965 and its amendment
on the same year. Since then, local governments in Malaysia have not been elected.
Royal Commission of Inquiry 1965
Problems faced during the early 1960s were further aggravated by a plethora of local
government entities in the country at that time. To make matters worse, there were many laws
governing local authorities since every state had their own laws. Until the early 1970s, the
proliferation of local councils reached staggering numbers—374 in Peninsula Malaysia
alone. Hence, the federal government saw the need to reform local governments in Malaysia to
improve its working and standing. A Royal Commission of Inquiry to investigate the working of
local governments in West Malaysia was established in June 1965 for this purpose. The
commission was headed by Senator Athi Nahappan while its members were D. S.
Ramanathan, Awang Hassan, Chan Keong Hon, Tan Peng Khoon and Haji Ismail Panjang
Aris—all were prominent politicians of the Alliance, the ruling party of the country. The
commission organized many meetings and discussions as well as received many memoranda
from various organizations and managed to finish a complete investigation four years later. The
commission sent its report to the federal cabinet in December 1969, but its report was only
released to the public two years later.
 Pakistan
Pakistan is a federal republic with three tiers of government: national, provincial and local. Local
government is protected by the constitution in Articles 32 and 140-A, and each province also
has its own local-government-enabling legislation and ministries responsible for implementation.
District councils and metropolitan corporations are respectively the highest rural and urban tiers
of local government in the provinces. Both urban and rural local government have two or three
tiers in all provinces except Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, where councils are not identified as either
urban or rural. There are 129 district councils across the four provinces, 619 urban councils
made up of one city district, four metropolitan corporations, 13 municipal corporations, 96
municipal committees, 148 town councils, 360 urban union committees, and 1,925 rural
councils. Additionally, there are 3339 neighborhood, ‘tehsil’ and village councils in Khyber
Pakhtunkhwa. Ability to raise local revenue varies according to provincial legislation. District
councils and metropolitan corporations have significant responsibilities, often jointly with either
higher provincial government – eg for policing (union guards), education, healthcare, roads and
local economic development – or with lower levels of local government – eg for water and
sanitation, museums and libraries and environmental protection.
 Historical Background
The local government system in the Subcontinent has its roots in the early history of the region
as Megatheres in his India wrote in around 302 BC identifies local bodies as Gram Parishads
which later assumed the nomenclature of Panchayat. Panchayat literally meaning group of five,
existed in almost every other village in the subcontinent, comprising the elderly members or
rather landlords and upper class Hindus who wielded fairly greater influence on the rest villagers
and were given the carte blanche to adjudicate and arbitrate in their mutual disputes.
In his famous book, Discovery of India, Jawaharlal Nehru wrote:
The institutions of local self-government have been the integral part of Indian society from
ancient past. As mentioned in the ‘Rig Veda’, the oldest written text of India’s recorded history,
village communities known as ‘Sabha'(assembly)/’Samiti'(Committee) across the Indian sub-
continent were self-governing over millennia.
During Mughal rule in the Subcontinent, many a reform was introduced in every field of life.
However, it is to be noted that panchayats were not interfered in. They, however, suffered a
setback during British rule as imperial interests of the foreign rulers demanded a powerful
central control.

Acts Introduced during British Raj

With respect to Local Governments a number of laws were enacted from time to time such
as:

1. Conservancy Act of 1842.

2. Municipal Act of 1850.
3. Resolution of 1854 which was passed with the word of acknowledgement People of
India are perfectly capable of administering their own local affairs.
4. Ripon’s Resolution.
5. Government of India Act 1919: one of the novelties of the act pertaining to the LG was
the transfer of local self-government to be administered by Indian minister.
6. Government of India Act 1935: Under this Act, provinces were authorized to legislate
with respect to the local bodies. As for urban areas, Lahore Corporation Act 1941 was
enacted.

Local Government in Pakistan

After Pakistan got independence from the British raj in 1947, following developments
regarding the Local Governments took place in the country:

1. Basic Democracies (BD)

It is said that it was Ayub Khan’s dream to have a kind of guided/ controlled democracy
to be espoused in Pakistan. He wanted to do so by doing away with the traditional parliamentary
setup Ayub Khan contended in his Friends not Masters, that this system had met fiasco to such
an extent as to vindicate our conviction that it no more be imposed on people. Thus, shortly
after seizing power, he came up with his own brand of local government entitled as BD system
which comprised four-tier structure:
For Rural Areas
(1) Union council
(2) Tehsil/Thana council
(3) District council and
(4) Divisional council
For Urban Areas
(1) Union committee
(2) Town committee
(3) Municipal Committee
(4) Municipal corporation

It is to be noted here that the members of these BD members were also assigned a
constitutional role of electing the president of Pakistan and the members of National and
provincial assemblies. Notwithstanding its aims and objectives, this system failed, and couldn’t
help being turned into a democratic facade to an autocratic structure.

2. People’s Local Government

As a result of 1970, election, PPP rose to power and in view of its manifesto, the
government spearheaded by Bhutto took revolutionary steps. The uniform structure of local
government was promulgated through a presidential decree in 1972. Like its predecessor, it too
was classified into two groups:

For Rural Areas

(1) Dehi Council
(2) Halqa Council
(3) Zila Council.

For Urban Areas

(1) Town committee
(2) Municipal committee
(3) Municipal corporation

Besides government also initiated a scheme known as People’s Works program which was
destined to furnish people with basic human facilities. However, these reforms were never put in
place, neither were the elections for LGs held.

3. Devolution of Power Plan 2001

With the ouster of Nawaz Sharif after a military coup, Gen Musharraf took over as the
Chief Executive of the country. He came up with a Seven-Point Agenda, for steering Pakistan
out of multifarious crises. For this purpose, Local Government Ordinance 2001 was issued. The
plan to devolve powers to the grassroots level was seen as a good omen. The Ordinance also
sought the replacement of bureaucracy by the popularly elected representatives.
Enforced with effect from August 14, 2001, this program envisaged a system comprising
(1) District government, (2) Tehsil/Town government, and (3) Union Council government. At the
district level, the Nazim assisted by Naib Nazim and district council was made the executive
head, with all the district authority vested in his person. District coordination officer (DCO)
stripped of most of his powers, was tasked to coordinate and assist Nazim. Exactly the similar
structural changes were made at the Tehsil level where Nazim was assisted by Tehsil Municipal
Officer (TMO).
There is no denying the fact that to a greater extent, this LG system went in pursuing its
objectives. But indeed, much was left to be achieved. Moreover, the actual working of the
system necessitated many reforms. In 2008, this local government system was wrapped up by
the new ‘democratic’ rulers, and the reason hurled for its abolition was simple: It was a
dictatorial creation meant to legalize Musharraf’s rule.

Sindh Local Govt Act 2013

This Act may be called the Sindh Local Government Act, 2013.
It shall extend to the whole of the Province of Sindh.
It shall come into force at once.
The Government may if so deemed necessary in public interest pass an order after recording
reasons, exclude any area or areas from the operation of such provision or provisions of this Act
and may make alternate provisions for such area by rules as may be deemed appropriate.
Rural and urban divide of councils.
Urban divide is based on five tiers.
a) Union committee
b) Town committee
c) Municipal committee
d) Municipal corporation
e) Metropolitan corporation

Rural divide is based on two tiers

a) Union council
b) District council

Provincial local government commission

Provincial finance commission
Comparison Between Malaysia And Pakistan Local Government With Special Case Of
Sindh
Pakistan Malaysia
1. Federal system with three tiers of govt 1. Also federal with three tiers of
national, provincial and lowest is local government federal, states and local
govt. government as the lowest and last tier
2. Local govt is protected by the 2. 4 and 5 of 9th schedule
constitution in articles 32 and 140 -A. 3. Local government is the Special
3. Earlier under control of federal (bd purview of the states (the ministry of
system, local govt ordinance 1979, housing and local govt is responsible
2001 local govt ordinance) federal to oversee the local govt dept.)
controlled systems 4. Constitutional protection
4. Now, Each province has its own local 5. Rural and urban divide
govt system enabling legislation and 6. No election
ministries responsible for 7. Selection based on reappointment
implementation. basis (only for councilors from ruling
5. No rural urban divide in KPK party)
6. Rural and urban divide (SINDH) 8. Women quota
7. 4 years term 9. Taxes imposition powers
8. District council and metropolitan 10. Sanitation and water function
corporation are highest tiers in rural 11. 3-year term
and urban councils.
9. Both rural and urban councils have
two to five tier system
10. Election based (election commission
of Pakistan conduct elections)
11. Election on party basis
12. Elections of mayors, deputy mayor,
chairman and vice chairman shall be
held directly and from amongst the
elected councilors, not from the
outside candidates.
13. Mayor, Chairman and (councilors
elected and quota basis).
14. 33 women quotas
15. Taxes imposition and collection
powers
16. By laws powers
17. Revenue through (OZT) and own
collection system.
18. Provincial local govt commission to
settle Department issues of elected
representatives
19. Provincial finance commission for
finance distribution and issues settling
body related to finance
 Conclusion
Local governments are responsible for decentralization of powers and their effective
utilization at lowest level. Both Malaysia and Pakistan have different local government
system but their functions and responsibilities are almost same. Hence, both countries
can learn from each other’s experiences and successes to in order to make the nations
prosperous and stable being brother Muslim countries.