April 3, 2002	Wednesday	Muharram 19,1423

LARKANA, April 2: The Pakistan People’s Party has rejected the presidential referendum and urged President Gen Pervez Musharraf to put off his uniform if he wants to take part in politics.

These views were expressed by the central leaders of the PPP at a public gathering in Dokri, near here on Tuesday.

Speaking on this occasion, Makhdoom Shah Mehmood Qureshi said that the country was passing through a difficult era with problems like Indian army buildup on the border, Sindh-Punjab dispute over water sharing and rising unemployment.

He said that in order to face these problems, national solidarity was the need of the hour and it was only the PPP and Benazir Bhutto that could provide a leadership to get the country out of the crises.

He recalled 1970 when Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was asked to save Pakistan.

He warned rulers against pushing the PPP to the wall and added that weakening the party would mean weakening the federation and harming the harmony amongst the provinces as the PPP had proved to be the symbol of national integrity and a bridge between Sindh and Punjab.

Naheed Khan, the political secretary of the PPP chairperson, said that the efforts of Gen Pervez Musharraf were aimed at removing Benazir Bhutto from the political horizon the way his predecessor Gen Zia physically eliminated her father.

She said that the PPP rejected the so-called referendum and added that if Musharraf was so much interested in taking part in politics than he must put off his uniform and contest general elections.

She said that if Musharraf really contested election, the claims of his popularity would prove to be wrong as a PPP worker could defeat him in any part of the country.

Naheed Khan raised slogans of ‘go Musharraf go’ and ‘no referendum no’.

Syed Khursheed Shah said that the generals were responsible for the split of the country and history was a witness that the PPP had saved the country.

He predicted that 98 per cent voters will stay away from the presidential referendum.

Qaim Ali Shah said that Gen Musharraf had already foreseen his defeat at polling stations and that was why he had planned mobile polling stations to visit people at their houses.

However, he said, the government will find only political orphans and ‘angels’ to vote in favour of the president as people always made right decision.

The others who spoke on the occasion included Dr Safdar Abbasi, Mohammad Ayaz Soomro, Syed Ghulam Shah, Ali Hyder Shah and Shafqat Hussain Unnar.

ANNIVERSARY: The caravans of the PPP activists from all over the country have begun arriving at Garhi Khuda Bukhsh Bhutto near here to participate in the 23rd death anniversary of late Z.A. Bhutto on April 4.

A small colony of tents has been set up close to the grave of Mr Bhutto to house the PPP activists pouring in from different parts of the country.

Camps have been set up in Larkana also and almost all