May 11, 2005	Wednesday	Rabi-us-Sani 2, 1426

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ISLAMABAD, May 10: Former prime minister Mir Zafarullah Khan Jamali has expressed pessimism about the assemblies completing their term. Talking to newsmen in the parliament house lobby and later in an interview to a private television channel, Mr Jamali said that he had so far been optimistic about the life of assemblies but after witnessing political developments in the federal capital over the last couple of days, he had come to the conclusion that any mishap could sabotage the system and the assemblies might not complete their term.

Meanwhile, Mr Jamali has asked Pakistan Muslim League president Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain to remove misunderstandings that had been created by his (Mr Jamli’s) statement about his party membership by holding a meeting which should also be attended by chief minister Punjab Chaudhry Parvez Elahi and his brother Chaudhry Wajahat Hussain.

He made the suggestion to Chaudhry Shujaat who had met him in the lower house and later at the Balochistan House on Tuesday.

Chaudhry Shujaat is reported to have twice tried in the house to hand over a paper to Mr Jamali but the latter did not accept it. It was not clear what was written in the paper which the PML leader also handed over to MNA Noor Jehan Panezai.

When Mr Shujaat left the house, Mr Jamali made a round of the house and met a large number of MNAs, PPP Parliamentarians’ Makhdoom Amin Fahim, a few ministers and several treasury MNAs who embraced him.

Talking about Ch Shujaat’s statement about his leaving the party the day he quit the prime minister’s office, Mr Jamali said it was strange that the party chief had not realised it over the past 11 months.

Mr Jamali, who is also former secretary general of the party, said he was being ‘rewarded’ for having nominated Chaudhry Shujaat as the party president and then helped him become the prime minister

He said he had enjoyed respect among the party MPs and had found that a large number of them were disappointed with the way the party was being run. Besides there was growing distrust among the forces that had brought about this party, he added.

These forces, he claimed, were unhappy over the fact that the popularity graph of the party was going down and, as a result, President Musharraf’s team was engaged in talks with the PPP Parliamentarians.

He said that unlike those who had jumped in the PML-Q from the PML-N, he had joined the party in response to gestures from the forces which were behind the formation of the PML. He said he was a leaguer by birth, whether in power or our of power, and no one could snatch this honour from him.

He said he had asked Chaudhry Shujaat to hold a meeting this week to sort out misunderstandings because he would proceed for Umra next week. Mr Jamali said that in his opinion there were certain elements who wanted to create a situation of crisis in the party by misguiding its leadership and creating controversies.

The party, he said, was being run by Chaudhry Shujaat and Mushahid Hussain without meeting constitutional obligations, as only two meetings of the parliamentary party were held in the last 10 months while no meeting of the general council or the central executive was held.

When asked if he would like to meet former premier Nawaz Sharif during his stay in Saudi Arabia, Mr Jamali said he had no such programme. Answering another question, he said the reports of a meeting held at Manzoor Wattoo’s residence, in which he was not present, were blown out of proportion to cause an unnecessary flare up.