LAHORE - Chairman Senate Raza Rabbani while denouncing the recent terrorist attack in Karachi has supported continuation of the security operation till its logical end and establishment of durable peace in this economic hub of the country.
Talking to media and earlier speaking at the inaugural ceremony of Media Course on Decentralized Development Governance jointly organised by CPNE, RHEC and UNDP here on Saturday, chairman Senate said all political parties of the country were determined and united against terrorism which augured very well for putting the operation to its logical end. Rabbani said the country would face serious consequences if 18th Amendment was erased from the constitution. He said a peculiar mindset was not in favour of devolving powers to the provinces while those who talked of provincial autonomy in the past were dubbed as traitors. Chairman Senate said in his view 18th Amendment could not be effectively implemented if powers under it were transferred to the provinces to cater needs of a ‘particular mindset.’ He said certain politicians and people in bureaucracy abhorred devolution of power to the provinces. In the context of 18th Amendment, he said, health and education sectors had been transferred to the provinces from the federal government but neither literacy rate improved nor medicines were available to the masses. He laid stress on empowerment of the people while opposing erasing of the 18th Amendment to secure results.
He said previous to this amendment, the federal capital held power and control of resources of the country from 1947 to 2010, which enhanced a sense of deprivation among the provinces.
Senator Raza Rabbani said 18th Amendment, which devolved the powers to the provinces, was the result of the labour of 27 members of the parliament, aimed at ending the sense of deprivation and as such it must stay on.
On Article 6 of the Constitution, Rabbani said it had failed to fully safeguard the Constitution and the Parliament.


Everyone saw what treatment was administered to this article so a substitution of it needed to be found out, he said with obvious reference to its application on the High Treason case against former army chief. Rabbani underlined the need of making Constitution a part of the academic syllabus so that the young generation could know its rights and duties.
“I have also written to the prime minister in this respect,” he added.
President CPNE Ayaz Khan presented welcome address, while Chairman Higher Commission Dr Muhammad Niaz, Minister for Education Rana Mashhood Ahmad Khan and Deputy Country Director UNDP Pakistan Ms Tracy Veining also spoke and Mujeebur Rehman Shami presented concluding remarks.