- Changes to 18th Amendment “need of the hour”: minister.
- NFC Award revision planned before elections: minister.
- Minister reiterates support for Kashmiris’ self-determination.
Federal Minister for Food Security and Research Rana Tanveer Hussain on Monday said that the government was considering reviewing the 18th Amendment to align it with the country’s current governance needs.
Speaking to journalists in Sheikhupura, Hussain said the 18th Amendment had created certain governance challenges that now require a thorough review.
“Amending the 18th Amendment has become the need of the hour,” he said, adding that the government was actively evaluating how to adapt it to “modern administrative realities.”
The amendment, passed during the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)-led government in 2010, has triggered many debates in the past, with calls to make changes to it.
However, PPP has strongly objected to such proposals and has vowed resistance against any tweaks to the amendment.
The 18th Amendment devolved powers to provinces on issues such as health, women’s development, social welfare, and local government.
The amendment also defined that provinces would receive 57.5% of the share of federal resources, while the rest of the amount was to be used by the Centre for debt servicing, development programmes, defence, and other areas.
Meanwhile, the minister also revealed that the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award would be revised before the next local government elections, saying the existing framework needed adjustments to reflect the contemporary financial landscape.
His comments come two months after President Asif Ali Zardari constituted the 11th NFC to address fiscal matters between the federation and the provinces.
The finance minister will chair the nine-member commission, with the finance ministers of Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan serving as ex-officio members.
Referring to regional issues, Hussain asked India to accept Kashmiris’ right to self-determination in accordance with UN resolutions, reaffirming Pakistan’s commitment to supporting the people of Indian-occupied Jammu and Kashmir.
In response to a question about Afghanistan, he said Islamabad expected Kabul’s cooperation in eliminating terrorism from the region and advised Afghan authorities to “learn from India’s humiliating defeat in the recent war.”
He added that Pakistan would not allow Afghanistan to become “a puppet of India.”
