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| December 16, 2002 | Monday | Shawwal 11, 1423 |
Jamali was ‘ready’ to give PPP chance in Sindh
LAHORE, Dec 15: Defence Minister and P-5 chairman Rao Sikandar Iqbal claimed on Sunday that Prime Minister Zafarullah Khan Jamali was willing to give the PPP a chance to form its government in Sindh, but the party missed the opportunity because it could not take a timely decision.
Talking to reporters at his residence, he said he had personally talked to the prime minister to tell him that the PPP should be given an opportunity to set up its government in Sindh as it was the largest party there.
The prime minister, he said, agreed with the suggestion and Makhdoom Amin Faheem was informed accordingly.
Rao said Makhdoom could not take any decision on his own nor could he establish a contact with Ms Bhutto.
Thus, he said the situation in Sindh changed and the PPP missed the opportunity offered by the prime minister.
About the growth of the P-5, the minister said the day was not far off when it would dwarf the PPP as more and more people had expressed their desire to join it.
He said the group was already ahead of its target and it would give the rivals a surprise during the next few days.
Some senior and founder members of the PPP, he said, had also contacted him with a desire to join the P-5. He said he would launch the group in Lahore very soon. “We’ll get a good response from the PPP workers”.
Ideologically committed and senior PPP workers had harmony of thought with the P-5 and they agreed with the view that the party had been taken hostage by a bunch of hijackers.
In response to a question, Rao said for the time-being the group was trying to suck in legislators and at a later stage doors would also be opened for un-elected people.
He told a questioner that the group would be fielding three candidates in the byelections. He said it was strange that the PPP had not put up any candidate on any seat in the important city like Lahore.
He answered in the negative when asked whether the P-5 members had received any notice from the PPP for their activities violative of the party discipline.
Defending the decision of the P-5 joining hands with the PML-Q, the defence minister said this was the only way to bring some relief to the party workers who had been in opposition for the last six years. He said their problems would be solved on a priority basis.
He praised Gen Musharraf for honouring his commitments with regard to holding the elections and transferring power to the elected representatives. He said it augured well that the president had given an assurance that the elected assemblies would complete their constitutional term of five years.
MEETS ENVOYS: The defence minister is scheduled to meet ambassadors of the United States, Turkey, Romania, Kazakkstan and the high commissioner of Britain in Islamabad on Monday.
Matters of mutual interest will come under discussion.
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