September 19, 2003	Friday	Rajab 21, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, Sept 18: A new political party is in the offing with the proposed merger of all the parliamentary groups and political organizations that have been part of the Pakistan People’s Party in the past.

Those up for the merger are the National Alliance, comprising the Millat Party, headed by Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari, the National People’s Party of Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi, the Sindh National Front of Mumtaz Ali Bhutto and the Sindh Democratic Alliance headed by Dr Arbab Ghulam Rahim.

Besides, the People’s Party Patriots, headed by defence minister Rao Sikandar Iqbal, and Aftab Ahmad Khan Sherpao’s faction of the PPP have been tipped to join the new political party. The PPP faction, headed by Ms Ghinwa Bhutto, is also said to have been contacted in this regard.

The proposed party, whose name is yet to be suggested, is said to be the “second phase of political realignment” after the unification of the five League factions.

Sources informed that the merger of all the PPP splinter groups is being brought about by the same ‘faceless’ elements who helped unify the League factions. The idea behind the move is said to streamline the ruling coalition.

The same sources understand that independent members of parliament would join either the reunified Pakistan Muslim League or the proposed political organization of the PPP defectors. They have since been sounded about the move.

Directives for unity was given to the heads of the National Alliance, the PPP (Patriots) and the PPP (Sherpao) factions at the same time as the efforts to reunite the PML were mounted. The two coalition partners started the work immediately and while the League now stands knit in a single whole, the job of bringing about the unification of PPP breakaways is said to be facing some “difficulty” which came to the attention of Sardar Farooq Ahmad Khan Leghari and Mr Ghulam Mustafa Jatoi when the two held formal discussions on the subject recently. No details of the difficulty have been given, but it is commonly believed that it is more of organizational nature than anything else.

However, the task of the merger of the PPP (Sherpao) with the Millat Party is said to be easier than bringing Mr Jatoi and Mir Mumtaz Ali Bhutto under a common political discipline. Mr Leghari and Mr Sherpao have family relations and have a common perception of the domestic political situation.

Nevertheless, the same cannot be said of the Patriot group, whose leadership is believed to be not unmindful of a situation where it can exercise more than one option.

According to sources, the top hierarchy wants the new party to be taking roots fairly soon to neutralize the proposed “mass mobilization” campaign threatened by the ARD.

Another area of concern for the establishment is the Muttahida Qaumi Movement, which has since joined hands with the nationalist forces in Sindh and is also a part of an anti- Kalabagh dam front.

The parliamentary strength of the proposed party to be made up of breakaway factions of the PPP, is 38 in the National Assembly with the Patriots making up the bulk with 21 members.

The National Alliance has 15 MNAs and the PPP-S group two members in the National Assembly. Obviously, the new party’s strength in the NA is not going to go up. But authorities seem to be interested in their political realignment, which is the prime objective.