HYDERABAD: Thro­wing its weight behind the country’s armed forces and assuring them of its full support, the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) at its workers’ convention held here on Sunday predicted a “change” within the next 10 weeks.

“The time has come the masses have been waiting for ... a change in the country may happen within the next 60-70 days,” PML-F Sindh president Pir Sadruddin Shah Rashidi, who holds the portfolio of Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis, told party workers who attended the convention in a large number.

Other provincial leaders of the party including senior vice president Senator Muzafar Hussain Shah, general secretary Sardar Abdul Raheem, Imamuddin Shauqeen, Mukhtiar Sehto, Waqar Jatt and Nand Kumar also spoke.

Pir Sadruddin Shah Rashidi urged the armed forces to play their due role to save the country in the face of external and internal threats, and observed that the army had always successfully played its role in combating terrorism and neutralising external and internal threats as it was under oath to defend the country and nation.

Explaining the threats, the PML-F leader said that the China-Pakistan Econo­mic Corridor (CPEC) had caused great unrest to enemies of Pakistan who were bent upon undermining both the project and the country. He attributed the recent threatening statements of US President Donald Trump to his opposition for the South Asia part of the CPEC.

He also noted that a lot of corrupt people and their associates had plundered the exchequer to cause great harm to the national economy.

“It’s time for the armed forces to come forward and play their due role in order to save the country and nation,” he said, adding that the list of all corrupt people had already been prepared and none of them should be allowed to escape. He said that the masses stood behind the armed forces.

Speaking about the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Pir Rashidi said “the party once led by Zulfikar Ali Bhutto is entirely different from the one practically led by the son of Hakim Ali Zardari [Asif Ali Zardari]”. People themselves could judge how strong and popular was the ZAB-led PPP and what was the strength of today’s PPP, he said.

Citing a prediction he attributed to the custodian of the Garhori Sharif, Pir Rashidi declared: “PML-F will reach the power corridors soon whether elections are held or not”. He said his party would bring an end to injustice in society.

Senator Muzafar Hussain Shah in his speech criticised successive governments over their failure to bring about any improvement in the civic conditions in the country and address the pressing issues like availability of safe drinking water to citizens and and adequate irrigation water to farmers. They failed to control unemployment and inflation and curb the massive corruption in government institutions he added.

He said the PML-F would give people an alternative leadership, claiming that the people of Sindh were fed up with the PPP.

Sardar Abdul Rahim presented several resolutions which were adopted by the participants in the convention.

The resolution demanded provision of proper and adequate facilities to people in the health and education sectors free of cost, an end to water shortage, accountability of all corrupt public representatives and officials and punishment to all guilty. One of the resolutions called for speedy justice to citizens and protection for the aggrieved people.

Sardar Rahim also called for justice in the Tania murder case in which an influential figure is alleged to have shot dead the 19-year-old woman at her home near Sehwan for her parents’ refusal to accept his marriage proposal.

He demanded withdrawal of all false cases registered against PML-F activists.

Published in Dawn, September 18th, 2017