PESHAWAR, April 17: The ruling Pakistan Muslim League has changed the venue of its workers’ convention from the Army Stadium to the Arbab Niaz Cricket Ground in Shahi Bagh owing to traffic and security reasons.

The PML provincial chapter is holding the workers’ convention on April 20 to mark the centenary of the party founded by Muslim leaders of the subcontinent in 1906 in Dhakka. The official PML headed by Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain considers it the political successor of the then All-India Muslim League.

Speaking at a news conference at the Muslim League House here on Monday, PML’s provincial president and Minister of State for Water and Power Amir Muqam said they had changed the venue owing to the parking problem, because they don’t want to close the busy Khyber Road.

Besides, he said, all the three chief ministers he had invited, President Gen Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz were likely to address the convention. “If President Musharraf comes, he will announce a development package for Peshawar”, he added. The minister said making foolproof security arrangements were the joint responsibility of the district and provincial governments.

He hoped that the provincial government would make foolproof security arrangements owing to the importance of the convention.

He said if the provincial government was not involved in removing their posters and banners across the city, it should find out and punish the culprits.

It may be recalled that during his ‘controversial presidential referendum’, President Musharraf addressed a public gathering at the similar venue (Arbab Niaz cricket ground) and announced a big development package, including 200 tubewells, for Peshawar. Not a single scheme had been executed so for.