LARKANA: The Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) and Sindh United Party (SUP) on Friday reaffirmed their resolve to frustrate Pakistan Peoples Party’s all efforts to regain powers in Sindh.

Speaking at a joint press conference at the local press club, GDA general secretary Dr Safdar Abbasi and SUP president Syed Zain Shah said that the latter would contest the upcoming general elections from the platform of the alliance.

Mr Shah declared that the SUP was now part of GDA. However, answering a question about possibility of his party’s electoral alliance with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz in future, he said: “Options would be weighed and assessed”. The SUP would go into elections after striking alliance with like-minded parties, he added.

He said elections would become meaningless if all political parties were not given level playing field.

Dr Abbasi rejected reports about PPP having approached him with offer to return to its fold. “It may be the wish of anyone to see us again there but no such talks at any level are underway. For a year or so, we hear such speculations but we are still here,” he said.

He said GDA was further strengthened with the joining of SUP. The people of Sindh were seriously thinking about breaking the old system, where the 15-year rule of a political party was quite condemnable.

“At present, we are passing through an uncertain political situation and we are skeptical about the electoral process as well,” said Dr Safdar.

In reply to a question, he said: “You will see Pir Pagara, the chief of PML-Functional, becoming active in [electoral] politics soon”.

Besides Syed Zain Shah, other SUP central leaders were also present at the press conference.

Mr Shah endorsed federal government’s policy of expelling illegal immigrants, and said it had been a longstanding stance of his party. He said illegal immigrants also included Bengalis and other foreigners who all should be repatriated to their respective countries.

Commenting on caretakers, he said they were expected to eliminate corruption and correcting performance of departments ruined during the PPP rule over the province but this had not been done so far. “Unfortunately, its [caretaker government’s] performance is unsatisfactory. Corruption is still rampant in Sindh, where differences between the CM and his health minister on the issue of ending corruption are resonating.”

Action against the corrupt was put on back burner … no action was seen against those former ministers, MNAs and MPAs who were allegedly involved in corruption, he said.

Published in Dawn, November 11th, 2023