February 12, 2008	Tuesday	Safar 04 ,1429

THATTA, Feb 11: The Pakistan People’s Party candidates for provincial and national assembly seats told a delegation of the United States embassy on Monday that elections in the district could never be fair until the Shirazi district nazim and his brother, caretaker provincial minister, were made neutral and stopped from campaigning for their close relatives.

Sassui Palijo, Haji Usman Jalbani, Arbab Wazir Ahmed Memon and Dr Abdul Wahid Soomro informed a four-member US delegation comprising Eric-D Tunis, first secretary of the embassy, Masooma Lotia, political specialist and two other officials that they the party feared rigging in elections.

Ms Sassui, the only woman candidate of the country fighting for a general seat, said that the Shirazis who were affiliated to Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid had fielded seven candidates for two national and five provincial assembly seats.

Six of them were real sons and nephews of Syed Aijaz Ali Shah Shirazi, caretaker provincial minister for food and agriculture and Syed Shafqat Hussain Shah Shirazi, Thatta district nazim while the seventh was their trusted ally Mohammad Ali Malkani, she said.

She said that the caretaker minister was openly campaigning with impunity for his sons and nephews in stark violation of Election Commission rules and regulations and code of conduct, and the district nazim was abusing his authority by putting the entire state machinery at the disposal for his sons, nephews and the ally.

The delegation was on a visit to the district to get first hand knowledge about election activities, facts and administrative measures being taken to ensure the elections were held in a fair and transparent manner.