PESHAWAR: The abrupt dissolution of all units of Pakistan People’s Party, by the top leadership, across Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has puzzled the party workers.

The PPP workers told this scribe that the decision to dissolve all units of party in the province was beyond their expectations. Some of the PPP leaders are optimistic to get slots in the future provincial cabinet of the party. However, most of them avoid divulging any information about possible favourits of PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in the province.

“The names of next possible office-bearers will start appearing in media within a couple of days,” a former provincial office-bearer of PPP said.

He said that Eng Humayun Khan, Syed Zahir Ali Shah and Anwar Saifullah were aspiring for the slot of provincial president of the party. He said that Mr Bilawal would constitute a five-member committee to assist him in the process of reorganisation of the party. He said that at present other wings (sister organisations) of PPP were also without office-bearers.

Some of the leaders optimistic to get slots in provincial cabinet of party

“I am official candidate of the party for by-polls on PK-8. The by-elections have been scheduled for May 12. All senior leaders should personally pay attention to the campaign to ensure success. I feel that some of former office-bearers are reluctant to take part in the election campaign,” Malik Tehmas Khan told Dawn. He said that the decision of leadership should be acceptable to all workers but some of them felt that they were no more office-bearers and had no responsibility to take part in the campaign.

“We are in contact with all former office-bearers to seek their support. We will hopefully succeed because workers have played vital role in mobilising voters during the past over two weeks,” said Mr Khan.

Syed Ayub Shah, a senior leader of the party, said that the decision to dissolve all units (organisations) was commendable and it was one of the demands of the disgruntled workers but next step to name new office-bearers was more important.

“We have time and again raised the issue that only ideological activists of PPP should be named as office-bearers to implement the basic ideology of the party and ensure democratic culture in it,” he added.

Mr Shah said that disgruntled workers had always raised the issue with central leadership and pleaded for holding intra-party elections to give chances to sincere and honest people to lead the party. He said that former ministers and those facing charges of corruption should not be appointed as office-bearers otherwise dissolution of the party’s organisations would be of no use.

Efforts were made to get version of the former provincial president but he could not be contacted through telephone.

Meanwhile, PPP former provincial information secretary Liaquat Shabab has blamed both federal and provincial government for pre-election rigging in the by-election on PK-8 Peshawar.

Talking to journalists here on Thursday, he urged Chief Election Commissioner to impose ban on posting and transfers besides stopping development funds for PK-8 to ensure free and fair by-election in the constituency.

He alleged that a close relative of a candidate was appointed as assistant returning officer, which was violation of the election rules. He said that like other parts of the country, Rangers should also be deployed in PK-8 to supervise by-elections in the constituency.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2016