April 24, 2002	Wednesday	Safar 10, 1423

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FAISALABAD, April 23: The Pakistan People’s Party has termed the referendum a “drama which will be staged to befool the international media” .

Speaking at a workers’ convention here at the residence of party’s divisional coordinator Raja Riaz Ahmad on Tuesday, PPP leaders said for the first time in the history, people would exercise their right of franchise without electoral lists, independent observers and polling agents.

They said in case the turnout in the referendum was less than 50 per cent, President Pervez Musharraf should quit and hand over the power to the chief justice of Pakistan.

They said a maximum number of political and religious workers and leaders and the people belonging to all walks of life would attend the public meeting of the ARD to be held in Lahore on April 27.

They said all political and religious parties by holding workers’ conventions and rallies would force the rulers to step down.

PPP leaders alleged the national economy had already reached on the verge of collapse due to negative policies of the rulers, but government officials were presenting a report of “all is good”.

The convention was addressed by party leaders, including Naheed Khan, Safdar Abbasi, Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan, Abdul Qadir Shaheen, Chaudhry Ilyas Ahmad and Imran Murtaza.

The convention also passed a number of resolutions demanding the government to withdraw the decision to hold referendum and announce schedule for the general elections. It also demanded that all the arrested political and religious leaders should be released and allowed to contest the polls.

Samundari tehsil Nazim Rana Farooq said all the Nazimeen and councillors who won the elections from the PPP platform would tender their resignations after receiving instructions from the high command in this regard.

Later, over 100 Nazimeen and Naib Nazimeen of various union councils handed over their resignations to the Punjab PPP secretary-general for using the same according to the instructions of the central leadership.