Political uncertainty came to an end after former provincial assembly speaker Mir Abdul Qudoos Bizenjo was elected unopposed as the new Balochistan chief minister. Coalition partners and opposition parties developed consensus over the nomination of Abdul Quddus Bizenjo as the leader of the house in the provincial assembly.
Bizenjo’s election as the province’s chief executive follows a months-long political crisis, which ended with the resignation of former chief minister Jam Kamal Alyani. The crisis had started with Alyani’s refusal to grant development funds to legislators followed by agitation from the latter.
He was reportedly convinced by senior leaders of his own party and allies to take the ‘honourable’ route and exit from office a day before the vote on the no-trust motion tabled by some of the disgruntled treasury members and largely supported by the opposition.
Apart from being the largest province of Pakistan in terms of area, Balochistan is also rich in natural resources and has a lot of problems. The province seems to have faded from the national narrative; only when it is the theatre of a terrorist attack does it surface, that too very briefly.
Meanwhile, political instability has become commonplace in the region, which severely affected development projects. The annual government budget is the lowest due to which Balochistan lags far behind the rest of the provinces in every field from infrastructure to education and health.
Balochistan also is prone to all-natural disasters including earthquakes, and floods. Harnai has been hit hard by the recent earthquake, the political uncertainty overshadowed the sufferings of earthquake survivors.
Decades of neglect and exclusion have created a sense of alienation in its population, which partly fuels the insurgency in the region. Sadly, the state has not been dealing with the genuine grievances of the population politically. After the instability comes to end, the provincial government should no pay attention to the real issues of Balochistan so that the people can get what they deserved.
