PESHAWAR: Jamaat-i-Islami has authorised district chapters of the party to make seat-to-seat adjustment with other parties for the upcoming local government (LG) elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Speaking at a press conference here on Tuesday, JI provincial chief Prof Mohammad Ibrahim said that his party would give preference to its coalition partners (Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf and Awami Jamhoori Ittehad Pakistan) to make alliance for the LG polls. He said that the district chapters of the party could also strike deals with other parties too.

“JI’s first priority will be PTI and AJIP, but we can also go for seat-to-seat adjustment with other parties,” he said. Answering a question, he said that his party had yet to finalise formula for LG polls with the coalition partners. However, he said that his party was in contact with other parties and negotiations for adjustment were underway.

He said that the coalition government had taken lead to conduct LG polls in the province on May 30. He said that in the past political governments had never conducted LG elections in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and the other three provinces.

Prof Ibrahim says preference will be given to PTI, AJIP

Responding to a question, he said that district chapters of the party had been given free hand to make deals with other parties for seat adjustment and in case of disagreement the district offices of the party would refer the case to divisional or provincial offices.

Prof Ibrahim said that JI would run a mass contact movement in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from April 3 to 12. He said that workers would conduct door-to-door campaign across the province to disseminate the party manifesto and programme regarding the coming elections. He said that corner and public meetings would be arranged in rural and urban areas and would also fill up voters’ forms.

Meanwhile, JI chief Senator Sirajul Haq suggested that Pakistan and Turkey should play role of mediators to defuse tension in the Middle East and resolve civil war in Yemen.

A press release issued on Tuesday said that Mr Haq was speaking at a function on Monday night, which was attended by Chief Minister Pervez Khattak, and newly-elected senators and ministers.

He said that Israel would take benefit from the crises in the Middle East and Pakistan being a nuclear power should play a lead role to resolve issues between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. He suggested that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif should call an all-party conference on Middle East and take political forces into confidence.

Published in Dawn, April 1st, 2015

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