ISLAMABAD Nov 2: Pakistan Muslim League (LM) has asked its workers to start preparing for contesting the general elections scheduled for October 2002, former speaker and PML (LM) leader, Syed Fakhr Imam, said on Friday.

Speaking at a news conference here, Mr Imam, who heads the political committee of the party, said that the committee met on Thursday to review the political situation in the country and decided to give a green signal to its workers to prepare for the polls.

The meeting was attended by Gohar Ayub, Syeda Abida Hussain, Mir Zafrullah Jamal, Ghulam Sarwar Cheema, Maqbool Khan Niazi, Azeem Chaudhry, Mansoor Hayat Tamman, Mian Muneer, Shujaat Ali Khan, Neelofar Bakhtiar, Aruangzeb, Mian Abdul Waheed and Yahya Munawwar.

Mr Imam said his party’s manifesto, which was at the draft stage, would focus on economic and social issues.

Asnwering questions regarding the US attacks on Afghanistan, he said the party wanted the US to immediately stop the indiscriminate bombing and killing of innocent civilians in Afghanistan.

He said his party was in favour of setting up a broad-based government, consisting of moderate Afghans, representing all nationalities of the country and without any external pressure or meddling.

The PML (LM) leader supported the idea of convening a Loya Jirga (grand assembly) to settle the leadership problem in Afghanistan. “Any outside pressure for the establishment of future Afghan government will not work. It will rather aggravate the situation,” he said.

Mr Imam defended his party’s support to the government’s foreign policy, which, he said, was in the larger interest of the country and the people.

Referring to the efforts being made for the reunification of PML factions, he said: “We will welcome if the party is reunified on the basis of principles but it would also require unison in the general behaviour of the leadership”.

He, however, outrightly rejected any chance of alliance with PML-N and said electoral alliance with other political parties was possible.