September 25, 2007	Tuesday	Ramazan 12, 1428

ISLAMABAD, Sept 24: Some veterans of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League, disappointed by the performance of the party leadership, have initiated a campaign to reorganise the party and save it from disintegrating.

Former minister of state Ishaq Khakwani — who was the first to renounce Gen Pervez Musharraf’s bid to get re-elected in uniform and declare that he would not vote for him — is reported to have invited a few senior leaguers at his residence last Friday.

They are reported to have expressed ‘extreme anxiety’ over party affairs as a result of which a large number of sitting legislators and strong candidates had not applied for party tickets, fearing outright defeat.

These leaguers feared losing their own ‘vote bank’ if they sought vote in the name of the present party leadership.

The meeting’s participants included former federal minister and PML senior vice-president (resigned) Lt-Gen Majeed Malik, Hamid Nasir Chattha, Tasnim Nawaz Gardezi, Nilofar Bakhtiar, federal minister G.G. Jamal, Kabir Ali Wasti, Azim Chaudhry and Mrs Asia Azim Chaudhry MNA.

The Leaguers are reported to have expressed resentment over what they called the attempts to sabotage the Musharraf-Benazir talks which they felt were in the larger national interest.

Mr Wasti told this correspondent most of the participants were of the view that the country needed national reconciliation to end the political crisis.

The party’s veterans wanted reorganisation of the party to make it a formidable political entity, capable of surviving political upheavals.

They said that no national interest was served by harming the understanding that had almost been reached with Ms Bhutto.

They said that they had decided to work for adoption of people-friendly policies by the party, which would enable it to face serious challenges.

They also decided to contact other like-minded party leaders to persuade them to strive for a qualitative change in leadership, capable of safeguarding the party’s interests.

Sources quoted Hamid Nasir Chattha as saying that he feared losing even his confirmed votes if he contested election from the PML platform.

Tasnim Nawaz Gardezi is reported to have said that PML candidates would not be able to seek votes on the basis of their performance.

Majeed Malik said that voters in his constituency had praised his decision to quit the party post and he was greeted by a large number of people when he returned to his native Chakwal.