ISLAMABAD, June 27: The People’s Party Parliamentarians (PPP) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) have decided to fully participate in the local government elections and they have agreed to have seat adjustments between them and with other parties in the Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy (ARD) and opposition groups.
This was announced here on Monday by ARD secretary-general Iqbal Zafar Jhagra, who was briefing mediamen about on decisions taken at a meeting of the heads of the component parties of the alliance. The secretary-general of the Sindh chapter of the PPP, Nafees Siddiqui, and ARD coordinator Malik Hakmin Khan were present on the occasion.
Mr Jhagra said the ARD parties had decided to take part in the local government elections and the leadership at divisional and provincial levels would be authorized to make seat adjustments with any opposition party at the local level.
However, he said it had been made clear to the parties’ lower leadership that seat adjustment would be allowed with the ruling PML or any of its coalition partners .
In reply to a question, Mr Jhagra said seat adjustments were possible with the Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal (MMA). However, PPP leaders Nafees Siddiqui and Malik Hakmin Khan did not give any clear reply to the question. “We have reservations about the MMA’s role, but we will look at it (the possibility of seat adjustments with the MMA),” said Mr Siddiqui.
Later, a source in the PPP told Dawn that there was very remote possibility of the PPP joining hands with the MMA at any level in the local government elections. He, however, said the PPP would have no objection if the PML-N made seat adjustments with the religious alliance as it had been decided that the two parties would not contest the polls from the ARD platform.
At the briefing, Mr Jhagra said the meeting reviewed the political situation in the country with particular reference to the recent decision of the Punjab assembly speaker of suspending many opposition members.
He asked the speaker to withdraw his ruling. He said the ARD would raise the issue at international level if the speaker did not withdraw his ‘unconstitutional and undemocratic’ ruling.
He said some opposition members of the Punjab assembly had briefed the ARD leadership on a series of incidents that led to the suspension of some of their colleagues.
Mr Jhagra also said the ARD would not allow the regime to carry out electoral process in the country without the return of Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif to the country.
The ARD would use ‘people’s power’ to stop general elections without the return of Ms Bhutto and Mr Sharif. Mr Siddiqui alleged that the government had started political victimisation, particularly in Sindh, against the PPP ahead of the LB polls.
