KARACHI, May 7: Pakistan People’s Party has allowed its district level leadership to enter into electoral arrangements in the upcoming local bodies’ elections, keeping in view the ground realities of their respective constituencies.
This was stated by the PPP provincial leadership at a news conference in the Peoples Secretariat on Saturday after a meeting of the Sindh Executive and the Karachi Coordination Committee in which several resolutions were also adopted.
Agha Siraj Durrani, Jam Saifullah Dharejo, Sattar Bachani, Prof N.D. Khan, Shah Mohammand Shah Dr Fida Mirani and Waqar Mehdi also participated in the press conference.
Briefing newsmen the provincial chief of the PPP, Syed Qaim Ali Shah, narrated the excesses against the party workers which he claimed had started even before the arrival of Asif Ali Zardari on April 16 and said that despite such provocations and state terrorism his party would take part in the local bodies elections, if and when they were held.
Condemning government’s decision of fragmenting the existing districts he claimed there were no provisions in the local government laws to change the existing boundaries.
Mr Shah alleged that the government had done so with mala fide intentions to cut across the PPP vote bank and to give advantage to the ruling coalition partners.
Mr Shah also alleged that the zila councils were also not being provided the necessary development funds and declared that come what may the PPP would not leave the field open for the regime’s cronies.
He also gave details of the mass arrests in Lahore and other parts of Punjab and Sindh and deplored framing charges against political workers under the Anti-terrorism Act.
Mr Shah alleged that by fragmenting the exiting districts the Sindh government was undermining the local government system.
Mr Nafees Siddiqui said that the PPP chairperson Ms Benazir Bhutto had authorised lower tier leadership to workout its own electoral arrangements in the local bodies’ elections, keeping in view the ground realities in their respective jurisdiction and after taken the party leadership into confidence.
Provincial Information Secretary Dr Fahmida Mirza said the PPP in its meeting also adopted a resolution deploring police excesses against the media and slammed the federal government for withdrawing the resolution for constituting a national assembly committee to investigate the incident and for fixing responsibility. Asif leaves: Asif Ali Zardari left for Dubai on Saturday evening, Bilawal House sources said.
Talking to Dawn at the airport Mr Zardari said that he was going to meet the family and would be back in about a week’s time.
When asked to assess the situation since his return on April 16, Mr Zardari said that he had succeeded in his objective of showing to the people and the world at large that the PPP was a force to be reckoned with, despite all odds.