KARACHI: PML-N, which had won eight of the 236 union committees in the Jan 15 local government elections, on Saturday agreed to lend its support to the PPP in the upcoming election for Karachi mayor.

The announcement to this effect was made after a delegation of PPP led by Labour Minister Saeed Ghani met PML-N Sindh president Shah Mohammad Shah at the latter’s residence.

The delegation comprised PPP Sindh general secretary Waqar Mehdi and Najmi Alam.

The two sides agreed that much like the centre, the two parties would work together as allied parties in Sindh and cooperate with each other not just for the upcoming mayoral election but also for all upcoming by-elections and the next general polls in the province.

Talking to media persons after the meeting, Mr Ghani, who is also PPP Karachi president, said that every successful political party had the desire to clinch the Karachi mayoral position. “But as per a moral principle, the single largest party has the first claim on this post,” he said.

Saeed Ghani reiterates party’s desire to jointly work with JI in LG set-up

He reiterated the stance of his party that the PPP had emerged as the single largest political party after local government polls in Karachi.

The provincial minister said the PPP had the desire to take along Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) as the people of Karachi had also reposed confidence in the JI.

“We need to work together to serve the residents of Karachi in the best possible manner,” he said.

He expressed gratitude to the PML-N for offering full support to the PPP for the upcoming election of the city mayor.

Mr Ghani hoped that the PPP would get support from other political parties.

Responding to a question, he said that PPP with 96 seats had emerged as the single largest party in Karachi after the latest polls while JI was the runner-up with 83 seats, adding that the PTI had won 43 seats, while PML-N secured eight seats in the latest polls.

He said that the next mayor of Karachi would function according to powers prescribed for the mayoral position in the provincial local government law. “We don’t have the powers for the mayor in our pockets,” said Ghani while responding to JI’s criticism about mayoral powers.

Replying to another question, he said that it was their foremost desire to jointly work with the JI in the local government set-up of Karachi.

PML-N Sindh president Shah Muhammad Shah said that both parties had agreed to work together for the development and progress of Karachi and the rest of the city.

He said that both parties had agreed to nominate a candidate for Karachi’s mayor on a meritorious basis. He hoped that the rest of the stakeholders would also provide support in this regard.

The PML-N provincial chief recalled that PML-N and PPP had jointly contested the latest local government elections in a number of union committees in Karachi and this alliance would continue in the upcoming by-elections and general polls in the province.

Published in Dawn, January 22nd, 2023