PESHAWAR, Jan 20: Leader of the opposition in the National Assembly Maulana Fazlur Rehman has said that the combined opposition will formulate a joint strategy to block the government’s move to get Gen Pervez Musharraf re-elected as president from the present assemblies.
“As the leader of opposition, I will take all the parties into confidence to prevent the ruling party’s move,” said the Maulana while talking to journalists at a function organised by the Gaddafi Development Foundation here on Saturday.He said the opposition would adopt a joint line of action in this regard and would succeed in foiling the government plan.
When asked about the situation in Waziristan in the aftermath of air strikes on suspected hideouts of Al Qaida operatives, the opposition leader said some forces were not happy with
the agreement between the government and local people and they wanted to get the deal scrapped.
“The agreement is prefect and the government has its writ in the North Waziristan Agency. But some elements are trying to create hindrances,” he said.
He said the NWFP governor was also satisfied with the agreement.
He said the government should restore the powers and functions of political agents in federally-administrated areas and should take steps to strengthen its authority there.
Opposing fencing and mining of the border with Afghanistan, he said the Treaty of Gandamak -- signed on May 26, 1879, between British India and the then Afghan ruler -- guaranteed free movement of people.
He said the government was creating problems for itself through ill-planned policies and people living on both sides of the border would not accept restrictions on their movement.
Speaking at another event, Maulana Fazlur Rehman expressed reservations over the changes in curriculum and the removal of the Quranic verses from Islamiyat courses.
He said the NWFP government had also made some recommendations, which had not been incorporated in the draft curriculum.
He said the NWFP government would encourage foreign NGOs, which worked for the economic uplift of people and they would be provided security.
He said that the MMA government would block the cultural onslaught of the West through NGOs.