Speaking to the media outside Parliament House, PML-N’s Ayaz Sadiq said that his party, PPP, Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party (IPP) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q) met with Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui.

“We asked them for their vote for [the election of] NA speaker and deputy, speaker, the prime minister and the president,” he said. Sadiq said that the MQM-P had assured the delegation of casting its vote in their favour for the NA speaker and deputy speaker, and the prime minister.

“We will come to them again for the vote for [the election of] the president and the Senate chairman,” he said. Sadiq further said that the PML-N would work on the MQM-P’s demand for a constitutional amendment regarding the distribution of the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award.

Meanwhile, MQM-P’s Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui said that the party had affirmed its support in exchange for the NFC Award to be fairly distributed in “every district and to every local body”.

Siddiqui added that they made this request “keeping in view the people’s rights in the constitution” and they wanted a place for those rights in the constitution.

“Democracy is the only way forward in Pakistan,” Siddiqui added, emphasising that the people should participate for democracy to take root in the country.