HYDERABAD, March 1: Intellectuals and political leaders on Saturday called for seizing the opportunity offered by Feb 18 elections and put the country back on rails.

They said at a dialogue on “Future government of Sindh, people’s expectations and role of civil society” organised by the Sindh Democratic Forum that the government should invite the majority party to form government in the centre and provinces.

Noted intellectual Ibrahim Joyo said that the Muttahida Qaumi Movement supported a particular community or people of a particular area. The party had benefited only the people of Karachi after getting billions of rupees, he said.

SDF convener Abrar Kazi opposed MQM-PPP coalition government in Sindh and said that MQM had always strengthened feudal lords and thrust people like Jatois, Pagaros, and Arbabs on the province.

Karamat Ali of Pakistan Institute of Labour Education and Research (PILER) said that it was not civil society’s job to tell a party how it should form government and appreciated the PPP’s initiative for the formation of a government of national consensus and its overtures even to Fazalur Rehman, who, otherwise, did not have any relevance in the present scenario.

He said that the future government would have 30 per cent less resources than had been at the disposal of outgoing government.

He supported formation of issues-specific alliances between parties saying “we must seize this unique opportunity for solving our issues.” The parties including PPP, PML-N, MQM and ANP who were publicly committed to provincial autonomy should adopt its bill before next budget, he stressed.

PML-N leader Afzal Gujjar said that the next government must extradite Altaf Hussain and hold him accountable for May 12 killings in Karachi. His party had set a new precedent by declining to join PPP-led government at the centre, he said.

ANP’s Ameen Khattak said that conspiracies were afoot to create rifts between PPP, PML-N and ANP. He praised civil society’s raising voice against injustices and said at least it was not sitting with America.

Agriculturist Nazeer Memon threw light on devastations caused in Thatta and Badin by sea intrusion which had rendered thousands of acres barren. He said that indigenous people settled in Thatta for centuries were migrating to other areas and about a million fishermen had lost their livelihood. Per acre yield of Sindh had been on a gradual decline ever since the enforcement of water accord of 1991, he said.

Prof Inam Sheikh said MQM’s mandate demanded that it should sit on opposition benches because it was in minority. The party should press for its quota on the basis of population alone, he said.

Jami Chandio said that according to democratic principles the majority party should be invited to form government. “We don’t have any objection if PPP inducts any Urdu-speaking person into the government,” he said.

He opposed the urban-rural reference repeated by MQM and urged future Sindh government to prepare a development incorporating development in health, education and communication sectors.