August 23, 2002	Friday	Jamadi-us-Saani 13,1423

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ISLAMABAD, Aug 22: The central parliamentary board of Pakistan Muslim League (QA) on Thursday considered and finalized a list of candidates for national assembly — 75 for Sindh, 43 for the NWFP, 17 for Balochistan, 12 for Fata and 2 for Islamabad federal district.

The board has recommended the name of Sindh governor Mohammadmian Soomro for contesting on the NA seat on which his uncle and former speaker Ellahi Bakhsh Soomro is also a candidate, a party source said.

“The recommendation has been sent to the party president Mian Mohammad Azhar who will give his final verdict,” said the source.

It is worth recalling that President Musharraf was questioned during his televised news conference on Wednesday as to how a governor will be able to contest polls without the necessary two years intervening between the date he relinquishes the charge as head of the province and the day the polls are due for.

The president expressed his interest in the legal aspect of the matter, saying “it was certainly an important issue.”

A source however expressed the confidence that the Sindh governor will certainly obtain special permission/waiver from the president to stand for polls.

According to Azeem Chaudhry, the party’s organising secretary, in all 175 applications were presented to the board which interviewed the individuals present on the occasion while those absent were represented by their respective provincial party chiefs.

The board, which met with Lt-Gen Abdul Majeed Malik in the chair, has sent the recommended list of candidates to the party president Mian Azhar for announcement by him in Lahore.

The decision about party candidates from Punjab will be taken by the party chief at Lahore separately, the party sources told Dawn.

Among those who attended the CPB meeting included Syed Iftikhar Hussain Gilani, Gohar Ayub Khan, Col Ghulam Sarwar Cheema, Eng Fazal Hussain, Neelofar Bakhtiar, Yahya Munawar, Azeem Chaudhry and Fizza Junejo, the sources said, adding that Ghaus Bakhsh Mahar and Salim Saifullah Khan represented Sindh and the NWFP, respectively, while Jam Mohammad Yusuf did not turn up from Balochistan.

When asked as to how the party will make adjustments on seats with its allies like the National Alliance and some regional parties, a party source said: “The party candidates will withdraw in favour of a candidate of like-minded party after a consensus is reached.”

However, he said, the party will not leave any seat uncontested and if there was no seat adjustment, it will fight it alone.