MITHI, July 26: The leader of the opposition in the Sindh Assembly, Mr Nisar Ahmad Khuhro, has blamed the policies of Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz for inflation, unemployment, poverty and water shortage in Sindh.
Speaking at a public meeting in connection with the election campaign of ARD candidate Dr Mahesh Malani here on Sunday, he said that those who were thinking that Thar was a constituency where ballot boxes would be stuffed with bogus votes, would be defeated on Aug 18.
He said the Tharis were fully aware of their rights and responsibilities and they could not be fooled by "selfish elements". Mr Khuhro said supporters of the Kalabagh dam and the Thal canal could not be well-wishers of people. He said it was the duty of PPP activists to let masses know the consequences of water projects.
"These elements are too much frightened of struggle of PPP for the restoration of democracy but they should not forget how Mr Jamali and Mr Mahar were sent home", Khuhro said.
He appealed to the people of Thar to support ARD candidate Dr Mahesh Kumar Malani. Speaking on the occasion, Mr Malani said if the country was to be saved from the present crisis, Benazir Bhutto should be brought back.
He said that he was not alone in the fight against Shaukat Aziz but the people of the entire country were in the field to oppose him. "If rigging does not take place Mr Aziz will be defeated", Mr Malani said.
Earlier, a meeting of the executive council of the People's Party Parliamentarians, Sindh was held at the Malani house. Qaim Ali Shah, Khurshid Shah, Nawab Yousuf Talpur, Rashid Rabbani, Maula Bux Chandio, Khaliq Soomro, Pir Aftab Shah, Mir Munawar Talpur, Agha Siraj Durrani, Abdul Salam Thaheem, Giyan Chand Esrani and others attended the meeting.
It was decided in the meeting that Nisar Khuhro, Nawab Yousuf Talpur and Pir Aftab Shah would establish election camps from Aug 1. An election committee was also formulated in the meeting which would organize gatherings in towns and villages.
Our Hyderabad correspondent adds: People's Party Parliamentarians provincial president and opposition leader in the Sindh Assembly Nisar Khuhro has said that Sindh has lost Rs100 billion in the past six years on account of the National Finance Commission award.
Talking to journalists at a wedding ceremony here on Sunday night, he said that Sindh finance minister Syed Sardar Ahmed had failed to take all the parties into confidence regarding his new formula, based on revenue collection and needs, otherwise Sindh would have got some Rs200 billion under the NFC.
Proposing that taxes should be collected by provinces and remitted to the federal government as and when required, he said that the formula, had it worked, would have given a practical shape to provincial autonomy.
He criticized the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and siad that it threatened to quit the coalition government whenever the issue of its assembly seats arose but it never gave such an ultimatum regarding the NFC award which was crucial to Sindh.
Regarding the legislation against karo-kari, he said that it was none other than MQM coalition minister in the Sindh cabinet Manzoor Panhwar who had supported the honour killing.
He said that the opposition had moved two successive resolutions on the issue in the provincial assembly, with the first amendment being tabled by women development minister Dr Saeeda Malik.
About the recent Sindh High Court decision, directing the election commission to announce results of MQM seats, he said that the commission should have contended it in the apex court.
Referring to the NA-229 Tharparkar by-elections, he said that the PPP was not permitted to hold a public meeting on July 25 as Finance Minister Shaukat Aziz was to address the public that day.
He said that his party had planned public meetings in the constituency on Aug 5, 10 and 15 and added that he had asked every PPP district office-bearer to oversee polling stations and polling agents to check rigging.
