The promulgation of the new Sindh Local Government Ordinance has led to the withdrawal of several allies from the Sindh government, and though neither it nor the central government is in danger of falling, this should make the PPP wonder whether the maintenance of the alliance with the MQM is worth it. The NPP and the PML-F have not only withdrawn from the Sindh cabinet, but the only PML-F federal minister has tendered his resignation. The PML-Q, which is a major ally in the centre, and the ANP, which is the PPP’s senior partner in the KPK coalition, have also had their ministers resign from the Sindh cabinet. The ANP has indicated part of the problem in its refusal to meet Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah, saying it was useless, and that Mr Shah should meet the central leadership. Thus the general impression came through that President Asif Zardari’s interest in his home province, shown by the personal interest he displayed in the PPP-MQM negotiations leading to the ordinance, was also resented. It remains to be seen how this is handled by the shutter-down strike against the new system called for September 13 by a number of extra-parliamentary parties, including nationalists, and which the PML-N, the PML-Q, the PML-F and the NPP are joining in.Apart from the element of the President, or the question of consultation, which the allies complain was not done by the PPP, the most common complaint was that the ordinance meant the division of Sindh. This is not the first time the PPP has used divisive tactics for narrow partisan ends. That is the only reason it is pursuing the idea of dividing Punjab. At a time when the nation needs unity, the PPP is busy with attempts at division. All this is being done to distract the electorate from what has been less than a glorious record of governance. The PPP should read the writing on the wall and understand that the Sindh government is collapsing, and with it the central; and thus it is time to go for fresh elections. It should realise that the protests in Sindh are against the division of the province, but the PPP, in pursuit of narrow partisan interests, has managed to have a local body system in one province, which it does not intend to have in others. The country needs a uniform system, not a multiplicity meant to favour any particular party. There must be no attempt to use these local bodies to postpone the impending general elections.