ISLAMABAD, Oct 30: The parliamentary party of Muttahida Majlis-i-Amal warned the military government on Wednesday against frequently issuing ordinances to hinder the smooth transfer of power to the elected representatives.

The meeting elected MMA vice-president Qazi Hussain Ahmed parliamentary party leader in the National Assembly and endorsed the nomination of Maulana Fazlur Rahman as alliance’s prime ministerial candidate.

Some 50 MNAs-elect attended the first meeting of the MMA’s parliamentary group, according to the organizers.

Liaquat Baloch, the parliamentary coordinator of the MMA, told newsmen that the alliance had empowered the heads of its component parties to negotiate with other parties on matters pertaining to the formation of coalition governments.

The alliance endorsed the name of JUI-F’s MPA-elect Akram Durrani for the NWFP chief minister’s office. Earlier, Mr Durrani’s nomination was opposed by the provincial Jamaat-i-Islami.

Describing the delay in the convening of the national and provincial assemblies as an ill-intended undemocratic act, the meeting demanded of the government to immediately summon the sessions.

The meeting demanded of the government to announce the schedule for transfer of power and stop issuing ordinances as, the participants maintained, the right to legislate after the elections had been transferred to parliament.

The parliamentary group asked the government to refrain from making the Constitution a controversial document by inserting changes in it.

The alliance, through a resolution, condemned the arrest of Dr Amir Aziz in Lahore and Dr Ghairat Baheer, the spokesman for former Afghan premier Gulbadin Hikmatyar in Islamabad, on the “direction of the FBI”.

The meeting asked the military government to shun playing in the hands of foreign powers and termed the arrests against the country’s self-respect, sovereignty and independence.

The meeting called for observing Friday as a protest day against these arrests and asked the MMA workers to take out processions all over the country. It demanded of the government to immediately release the two doctors.

The parliamentary party expressed resentment over the price-hike of essential commodities, especially the petroleum products, and termed it an illegal act.

The meeting elected Maulana Mohammad Umar Sadiq MMA’s parliamentary leader and Nasrullah Khan Shajee its deputy parliamentary leader in the Sindh Assembly.

Sirajul Haq was chosen for the post of NWFP’s senior minister, Bakht Jehan for speaker’s slot and Ikramullah Shahid as deputy speaker in the NWFP Assembly.

The meeting empowered Maulana Mohammad Khan Shirani to decide the names of parliamentary leader and deputy parliamentary leader for Balochistan by consulting the parliamentary party of that province.