October 2, 2003	Thursday	Sha’aban 5, 1424

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ISLAMABAD, Oct 1: Pakistan Muslim League president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and the party’s senior leader senator S.M. Zafar had a meeting with MMA’s Liaqat Baloch in Lahore on Tuesday evening to reassure him of the government’s determination to reach a consensus deal on the LFO.

Talking to Dawn, Mr Baloch, who arrived here on Wednesday, said both the leaders assured him that the government was sincere in reaching an understanding with the MMA to end the political deadlock.

He said they assured him that there will be no more delay in the finalization of the constitutional package and the amendment bill, and that Prime Minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali on his return from the US visit will meet President Gen Pervez Musharraf to seek his consent on issues pertaining to his person.

He said he had told Chaudhry Shujaat that the MMA had had exhaustive talks with the government and it had offered maximum flexibility even at the cost of its own political credibility, and that it was no more interested in continuing the talks.

“Whatever we have discussed and whatever has been put in black and white must be turned into a broad constitutional package and given the shape of an amendment bill to be presented in parliament at the earliest,” he said.

He said he had told the PML leaders that it was the Jamali government’s duty to persuade Gen Musharraf to adopt an honourable path for his safe exit and help take the country out of the constitutional deadlock.