July 4, 2002	Thursday	Rabi-us-Sani 22,1423

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JHANG, July 3: The Pakistan People’s Party has received a record number of applications from all over the country to get party ticket for contesting the general elections.

This was claimed by former federal minister and a member of the PPP’s central executive committee, Makhdoom Faisal Saleh Hayat, at a press conference at his residence here on Wednesday.

Mr Hayat said the number of applicants was much higher than the previous elections and a large number of people, particularly former army officers and bureaucrats were joining the party. He cited the names of former interior minister Hafeez Ullah Ishaq, ex-military secretary Brig Akhtar, and former chairman of dryport Mushtaq Cheema in this regard.

He claimed that though the military government was indulging in pre-poll rigging and planning to bring into power a particular party, popularity of the PPP was still high.

The Makhdoom said the president’s efforts to unify factions of the PML and statements being given by him, the Punjab governor and other high ranking government officials in favour of that party was a proof of the government’s involvement in pre-poll rigging.

But, he warned the people in power to refrain from rigging elections as it could be disastrous for them and the country.

He said Jhang district was a stronghold of the PPP and the party had been winning three or four National Assembly seats of the total five seats since 1988. He vowed that the party would sweep the October polls, too.

Referring to the package of constitutional amendments announced by the government, he said the president had no legal or moral authority to give such a package as the Supreme Court of Pakistan had given him a limited mandate.

He termed the amendments harmful for both, the parliamentary form of government and the federal nature of the Constitution, and if made a part of the Constitution, would result in serious conflict between the centre and the provinces.

He said the amendments would concentrate all powers in a single person and it was against the new setup of district governments and the devolution plan given by the military government.

He said whenever an individual or a dictator had given a constitution, it had a very short span of life. He cited the example of the 1962 and 1956 constitutions.

Mr Hayat also criticized the condition of educational qualification for contesting the election for national and provincial assemblies, saying that only 2 per cent people held the degree. By imposing the condition, 98 per cent of the population has been denied the right to contest elections, which was a gross violation of the basic human rights.

Mr Hayat welcomed Sheikh Waqar Ahmad, a union council Nazim, in the party fold.