PESHAWAR: The annoyed activists of Pakistan Peoples Party have announced to support the party candidates in the local government elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and not to raise their demand for intra-party polls till May 30.

According to a party source, the decision to unite both the groups was taken in a joint meeting of the relevant leaders with Senator Rehman Malik in Islamabad on Tuesday. However, it was disclosed by Mr Malik on Wednesday at a press conference at the residence of former federal minister Arbab Alamgir at Tehkal, Peshawar.

Reading out a resolution, Mr Malik said in the presence of leaders of PPP factions that all the activists would work together under the leadership of party chairman Bilawal Zardari and co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari for the unity of workers.

Expressing his views, former governor Masood Kausar, who was one of the main leaders of annoyed group, said that they (annoyed activists) had postponed their demands such as one for holding intra-party elections till May 30 so that the workers could support the party candidates with unity in the LG elections.

Workers united under Bilawal’s leadership, says Rehman Malik

“We don’t believe in any other personality because there were only two personalities (Benazir Bhutto and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto), and now the workers are only following their ideology,” Mr Kausar said.

He said that they (unhappy workers) had promised to work for the party and they would prove their loyalty on May 30 by supporting the PPP candidates. He said that after the LG elections they would meet to review their achievements.

Leaders of the annoyed group, including Syed Ayub Shah, Tariq Khattak, Azam Afridi and Tahir Abbas, and party’s provincial president Senator Khan Zada Khan, general secretary Engineer Mohammad Humayun, Liaquat Shabab and Peshawar district president Malik Tehmash, were present on the occasion.

Rehman Malik said that he had come to Peshawar with the sole aim to unite all the workers and remove the differences among them. He said that the workers’ reservations would be resolved and the ignored activists would be compensated.

Answering questions about Zulfiqar Mirza’s allegations against him and his brother, he claimed such reports were baseless. “We (I and my brother) have no relationship with actress Ayan Ali and I would resign from politics if anyone proved it,” he said. Mr Malik said that politics of conspiracies should be avoided as such acts were against the country’s interests.

He said that it was a conspiracy against him and PPP leadership, adding that Mr Mirza was used for weakening the party. He said that Mr Mirza had attacked a police station, broke cell phone of a DSP and thus he was no longer member of the party, otherwise he would have visited his residence. “The attack is tantamount to assault on the state,” he said.

The PPP leader condemned the sacking of employees of Workers Welfare Board and asked the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government to reinstate them otherwise his party would start protests against it. Mr Malik warned against the privatisation of the Bank of Khyber and said that the bank was earning $200 million on monthly basis.

About the law and order situation in the country, the former interior minister said that he had already revealed presence of the self-styled Islamic State. He said that the terrorists were still here and it was duty of the government to eradicate them.

Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2015

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