LAHORE: PPP central Punjab President Qamar Zaman Kaira has denied that he or any other office-bearer is quitting the party.

In a statement issued after a meeting held here on Monday for re-organising Sialkot chapter of the party, Mr Kaira said: “It’s better to quit politics than quitting PPP”.

He said those quitting the party would soon repent their action.

“All reports regarding the central Punjab leadership (quitting the PPP) are false and baseless. Kaira and Nadeem Afzal Chan are an iron wall standing between the PPP and its enemies,” he said.

The prolonged absence of Mr Chan from political scene is resulting in rumours that he (Chan) is also abandoning the party like his uncle, former federal minister Nazar Muhammad Gondal, who is likely to join the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI).

Mr Kaira said the party had decided to send legal notices to the papers publishing “bogus” news reports regarding fissures in the PPP.

He said he had no issue if he was removed from the party office he was holding and given some other responsibility.

“I’ll wholeheartedly accept any office to be given by chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.”

Those who attended the meeting included central information secretary Chaudhry Manzoor, Punjab information secretary Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar, acting general secretary Osman Malik and Raja Amer.

Meanwhile, Mr Bilawal reached Lahore in the evening to attend re-organisation meetings of Lahore and Gujranwala chapters of the party and to meet office-bearers of the PPP’s all divisional set-ups in the central Punjab region.

Published in Dawn, June 6th, 2017