SUKKUR: Sindh Minister for Information Syed Nasir Hussain Shah has said that if the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan sincerely believes census is marred by blunders then the party should immediately separate itself from the ruling coalition and resign from assemblies.

He told media persons at Sukkur airport on Sunday before leaving for Garhi Khuda Bakhsh that MQM-P was just playing politics and staging a farce over peoples’ problems.

He said that Pakistan Peoples Party’s stance on the census was clear. “We will take up the issue in Council of Common Interests and also approach the court. We had made our reservations over the census results crystal clear since the first day the census was made public,” he said.

He said that if MQM-P had to stage protest over the issue then it should first tender resignations and then hold protest in Islamabad. There was no justification for holding protests against census in Karachi and against the Sindh government, he said.

He said that taking part in local bodies’ polls as well as by-elections was part of politics but his party would take the course that was decided by PDM and PPP central executive committee.

Deputy chairman of Senate, Saleem Mandviwala, who was also at the airport, told journalists that the National Accountability Bureau had become a big hurdle to smooth functioning of bureaucracy. If the NAB did not improve its attitude the bureaucracy could not carry out its job in a better manner, he said.

He said that there was no institution in the country which refused to come when it was summoned by the parliament but he had no doubts in his mind about the chairman of NAB and his subordinates that they would not appear before the parliament and its committee.

He said that parliamentarians were bound to declare details of their assets before Election Commission of Pakistan and Federal Board of Revenue but what was wrong in it if details of assets, degrees and domiciles of those working in NAB were checked by parliament.

He said that it was parliament’s job to oversee institutions and if parliament was asking to oversee the NAB then why an issue had been made out of it.

He said in answer to a question that his case was in court where he would submit his reply and he was hopeful the court would administer him justice.

He clarified that Senate election would be held on it scheduled time because polls for the Upper House could not be held earlier than its fixed date.

Published in Dawn, December 28th, 2020