For decades, politics in Pakistan has often looked less like a contest between independent political forces and more like a carefully managed chess game. Alliances appear, disappear, factions emerge, leaders suddenly return to the political scene, and parties that seemed finished somehow find a way back into the game.
The return of Mustafa Kamal and Anis Qaimkhani to mainstream politics is difficult to view simply as a spontaneous political comeback. To many observers in Karachi, their re-emergence appeared to be part of a much broader political arrangement—one in which businessmen, political intermediaries, and powerful institutions all seemed to have a role.
Faisal Vawda’s involvement also raised questions about who was actually coordinating the process and who was communicating with whom. The eventual PSP–MQM merger did not feel like an organic political development to many Karachi residents. It looked, instead, like the final stage of a process in which the major decisions had already been made behind closed doors.
And this is where Karachi’s uncomfortable political reality needs to be confronted.
Mustafa Kamal and Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui built their political identities within the MQM political ecosystem. Without the MQM platform, it is difficult to imagine either man having the same political standing. At the same time, MQM itself operated for decades within a political environment shaped by powerful state institutions and shifting relationships with the Establishment.
That history cannot simply be erased.
The bigger question, however, is this…
After nearly four decades of MQM politics, what has Karachi actually received in return?
Karachi has remained trapped in the same cycle, political speeches, promises, accusations, protests, strikes, victimhood narratives and demands for loyalty from voters. Yet the fundamental problems of the city remain largely unresolved.
Where is the modern mass-transit network?
Where is reliable municipal infrastructure?
Where is effective waste management?
Where is the properly planned expansion of roads, drainage, water systems and public spaces?
Where is the transformation of Karachi into the world-class economic powerhouse it should have become?
Karachi is Pakistan’s commercial heart, home to its largest concentration of businesses, industries, financial institutions and port activity. Yet the city continues to struggle with basic governance.
The tragedy is that Karachi’s political debate has repeatedly become trapped in the question of who controls the city, rather than how the city should be governed.
MQM’s history also cannot be discussed honestly without acknowledging the serious allegations and documented history surrounding political violence, extortion, targeted killings, intimidation and strikes associated with the broader MQM era. These issues contributed to an environment of fear and instability that had profound social and economic consequences for Karachi.
Businesses were forced to deal with bhatta demands. Commercial activity was repeatedly disrupted by strikes and shutdowns. Investors became reluctant to commit capital. Workers, professionals and families left the city or moved their businesses elsewhere.
The cost wasn’t merely measured in money.
It was measured in lost opportunities, lost investment, lost jobs, lost trust and, most tragically, lost lives.
But blaming one political party for every problem Karachi has faced would also be an oversimplification. PPP, MQM, PTI, JI, federal governments, provincial governments, municipal administrations, bureaucracies and powerful unelected institutions have all played different roles in Karachi’s political history.
That is precisely why Karachi needs something fundamentally different.
Karachi Doesn’t Need Another Political Experiment
Karachi does not need another political faction manufactured from the remnants of previous factions.
It doesn’t need another personality cult.
It doesn’t need another party telling citizens that they owe it their votes because of history, ethnicity, victimhood or political loyalty.
And it certainly doesn’t need politicians whose primary objective is controlling administrative power rather than delivering services.
Karachi needs governance, not political theater.
If the ultimate objective is to change Karachi’s future, the first step should be to break the city’s dependence on the traditional political machinery whether that machinery comes under the banner of PPP, MQM, JI, PTI or any other established political brand.
The city should not belong to any party.
Karachi belongs to Karachi’s people.
Run Karachi Like a Modern City
The next generation of Karachi’s administration should be radically different from the traditional political model.
Instead of filling government departments with political appointments and unnecessary layers of bureaucracy, Karachi should recruit qualified subject-matter experts, engineers, urban planners, economists, financial professionals, technology specialists, transportation experts, environmental scientists, healthcare professionals and experienced administrators.
In other words…
Hire the best people to solve the problem, not the people who are best connected politically.
The entire municipal system should move toward a one-window digital government model.
A citizen should not have to visit five different offices, meet multiple officials and carry a stack of paperwork simply to obtain a basic municipal service.
One digital platform should allow residents and businesses to:
- Register properties
- Pay taxes and municipal fees
- Apply for permits
- Report garbage and infrastructure problems
- Track complaints
- Request water and sanitation services
- Monitor construction approvals
- Access public records
- Track government projects
- Submit business applications
- Follow the status of every request in real time
Artificial intelligence can automate routine processes. Blockchain or other tamper-resistant technologies can be used where they genuinely improve transparency and auditability. Data analytics can identify corruption, unusual spending patterns, service failures and infrastructure problems.
And most importantly…
Every rupee should be traceable.
Every project should have a public budget.
Every contract should be visible.
Every milestone should be measurable.
Every department should have performance indicators.
And every senior administrator should be accountable for results.
No Ghost Employees. No Political Payroll.
Karachi cannot afford to maintain thousands of unnecessary positions simply because someone has political connections.
The city should have a verified digital employee registry.
Every employee should have a defined job description, attendance record, measurable responsibilities and performance evaluation.
No ghost employees.
No politically created positions.
No unnecessary layers of management.
No government office existing simply because someone needs a job for a relative or political supporter.
The objective should be simple:
A smaller, professional, technology-driven administration that delivers more services at a lower cost.
Karachi’s Future Should Not Be Decided Behind Closed Doors
The greatest danger is not merely that one political party controls Karachi.
The greater danger is that Karachi’s future continues to be decided by political actors, powerful institutions and closed-door arrangements without meaningful participation from the people who actually live and work in the city.
If there is a long-term plan to change Karachi’s constitutional or administrative status including proposals for greater autonomy or federal control—then that conversation must happen openly.
Karachi cannot be treated as a chess piece.
It is a city of more than 20 million people, a global commercial gateway and the economic engine of Pakistan.
Its future should be decided through transparent institutions, public debate, democratic legitimacy and measurable outcomes not through political engineering.
The old model has had decades to prove itself.
It failed Karachi.
The answer is not another political party.
The answer is professional governance, transparency, technology, accountability and competent people.
Clean government.
Digital government.
Expert government.
And above all, government that works for the citizens rather than expecting citizens to work for politicians.
Karachi doesn’t need another king of the city.
Karachi needs a system that makes kings irrelevant.
BTW, Dr. Arif Alvi is in Detroit. Tomorrow, he will be giving speech at ISNA convention. 
www.thenews.pk
