KARACHI: Altaf vows to support new party leadership
By Shamim-ur-Rahman
KARACHI, Aug 19: The London-based founding chief of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, Mr Altaf Hussain, on Tuesday declared that he would prop-up a new leadership, committed to 1978 ideological moorings of the party, and said that self-centred “deviants” and extortionists would not be tolerated.
He was speaking at the general workers council at Nine Zero, which was simultaneously heard in 16 other cities of Sindh. This was his first speech after he effected a major shake up within the party in less than a year on Aug 15.
The six-member adhoc committee, which comprises Anwar Alam, Abubakr Siddiqui, Zahid Qureshi, Hassamuddin Jalali, Ismail Qureshi, and Ms Mumtaz Anwar, was present during the telephonic address.
As Mr Hussain, who in a surprise development, earlier this month, had lashed out at the “vested interest” within his party and had threatened to leave the pivotal role, came on line to make his telephonic address, the whole place was filled with emotional slogans by the charged activists, who vowed to do or die for him and the party ideals. They were carrying Mr Hussain’s portraits and party flags.
Many of them were not even born and some of them must be in their childhood when the APMSO had adopted a radical platform in 1978, articulating sense of deprivation among the Mohajirs, to which Mr Hussain emphasized during his address.
It clearly indicated serious problems of allegiance, within the party as he emphasised on the need for invoking radical approach, which the party’s forerunner, APMSO had declared in 1978.
His call to old members, who had become idle after being disheartened owing to self-centred policies of some “politicized” members of the MQM, was a significant indication of internal problems of “discipline”.
Also significant was his directive to the ideologically committed cadre from the interior of Sindh, to be mentally prepared for coming to Karachi, if they were needed while dealing with the rouge elements who were thriving on the support of extortionists and agencies. He declared that such elements would not be allowed to succeed.
While Mr Hussain expressed his contempt for those elements within the rank and file of the party, who had deviated from ideological moorings, envisioned by him in 1978, he declared that “unless that is done I am not prepared to lead the party.” He did not explain whether the conditions today were the same as they existed in 1978.
He said that if the self-centred elements wanted to push their personal agenda, instead of pursuing party ideology and addressing problems of party workers and supporters, they could leave the movement.
Addressing party cadre, Mr Hussain said that “unfortunately many of those who had joined the movement, especially office- bearers, deviated from the basic philosophy of the movement and pursued their own vested political agenda.”
Mr Hussain declared that he would not tolerate indiscipline from Dr Imran Farooq down to unit level, and those who would not mend their ways would not be forgiven again.
Also significant was Mr Hussain’s reference to “indifferent” attitude of some of the office-bearers towards those who were extra-judicially killed.
Mr Hussain’s emphasis was on comparing ideological movement with a party doing realpolitik to grab power. He said the movement’s ultimate objective was not to grab power but to eliminate the exploitative system from the country.
Mr Hussain also referred to MQM’s stand on greater Thal canal and said that it was doing all it could, in the given circumstances.
While his address was a reminder that Mr Hussain was still calling shots, it nevertheless indicated that MQM’s association with the government and its role in power game was creating some difficulties of discipline for him.
Mr Hussain disowned extortionists and those who misused the name of MQM by not being respectful to their teachers and said that if complaints of extortion were proved against any one, his basic membership would be terminated.
