With the departure of General Musharraf, voices are being raised from democratic quarters to review the artificial structures erected by him to prop up his illegitimate rule. Like his military predecessors Musharraf used the local governments to advance regime survival and consolidation. He created National Reconstruction Bureau (NRB) under a retired military man of dubious credentials. NRB was also stuffed with similar pseudo-professionals. The veneer of empowerment of people, political neutrality and decentralization of power wrapped so enticingly around the devolution plan by NRB was ripped apart when the system was tested on the touchstone of ground realities. NRB put in place a highly politicized administrative dispensation. The Nazims belonged to one party or the other. So they showered favours on their cronies and party men. The system proved to be opaque and non-transparent as there were no checks and balances against corruption. That is why if the elected provincial governments want to repeal the existing local government ordinance it would be a historic event hailed by all concerned. -AHMAD NAWAZ WATTOO, Okara, via e-mail, August 24.