Nawaz to offer Qureshi key party slot

[Omar1984]

Nawaz Sharif and other key leaders of the main opposition party were “desperate” for an opening in the remote southern parts of Punjab and upper Sindh and they believed that Qureshi was their best bet. PHOTO: INP/FILE


ISLAMABAD: Sensing an opportunity to gain significant ground in south Punjab and upper Sindh, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz President Nawaz Sharif is likely to offer former foreign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi a “key slot” in his party when the two meet this week.

A PML-N insider told The Express Tribune on Sunday that Nawaz Sharif and other key leaders of the main opposition party were “desperate” for an opening in the remote southern parts of Punjab and upper Sindh and they believed that Qureshi was their best bet.

“Mian Sahib and the people he trusts have realised that an opportunity has come their way in the person of Qureshi … it looks like they will go to any lengths to grab it,” he said.

It is not clear what position Sharif would offer Qureshi. The PML-N is due to choose new office bearers for its Punjab chapter in a couple of weeks.

Qureshi belongs to Multan district in south Punjab, the so-called ‘Seraiki belt’ where the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has long overshadowed the PML-N. He quit both the PPP and his National Assembly seat a week ago, citing differences he had with President Asif Zardari earlier this year.

The former foreign minister is being wooed by both the PML-N and Imran Khan’s Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI). But while Sharif is to meet directly with Qureshi on November 22, Khan is not scheduled to meet him before the former minister announces his political future at a public rally in Ghotki, Sindh, on November 27.

An associate of Qureshi told The Express Tribune that his meeting with Sharif would likely take place in Multan on Tuesday. MPA Abbas Raan said Nawaz’s youngest son Hassan Nawaz, had conveyed to family members of Qureshi his father’s desire to meet Sharif at the family residence in Multan, known as Bab-ul-Qureshi, Daulat Gate.

Makhdoom Javed Hashmi, a senior PML-N leader from Multan, backs Qureshi’s entry to the party, said a PML-N colleague of his. He said that Hashmi had opposed Qureshi quitting the PPP, but believed he would be an important leader for the PML-N.

Another associate of Nawaz Sharif said Hashmi had conveyed his support for Qureshi joining the party to the top PML-N leadership.

However, sources in the party said that there was still one hurdle to Qureshi being offered a significant position.

They said that the Khosa family of Dera Ghazi Khan, who have been allied with the Sharifs for a long time, would not like to see another major leader from the south Punjab region in a key position in the PML-N.

Sardar Zulfikar Khosa is president of the PML-N’s Punjab chapter.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 21st, 2011



Nawaz to offer Qureshi key party slot – The Express Tribune




Now why would Qureshi join PML-N when he has resigned from Zardari's PPP government. PML-N and the current PPP government are exactly the same, and will follow the exact same policies.

 

[AstanoshKhan]

Qureshi is a power addicted person and PTI may not offer him what he's used to, but again I'd loved to be proved wrong. Interesting times ahead... a frustrated PML-N vs getting more and more popular PTI. Let's see how the Karachi Jalsa goes for PTI - if it becomes just like the one in Lahore - Welcome to Imran Khan as the premier of Pakistan.

 

[Omar1984]

Qureshi is a power addicted person and PTI may not offer him what he's used to, but again I'd loved to be proved wrong. Interesting times ahead... a frustrated PML-N vs getting more and more popular PTI. Let's see how the Karachi Jalsa goes for PTI - if it becomes just like the one in Lahore - Welcome to Imran Khan as the premier of Pakistan.

Ganja Nasharif is getting desperate.


Nawaz using personal contacts to attract Shah Mehmood Qureshi


ISLAMABAD - With Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan claiming that former foreign minister Shah Mehmood Qureshi would announce that he is joining the PTI at a public meeting on November 27 in Ghotki, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Nawaz Sharif is going all out to keep Qureshi away from the PTI and mutual friends are being pushed to attract him to the PML-N, Pakistan Today learnt on Friday. Khan recently said in a talk show that Qureshi would be announcing his decision to join the PTI at the public meeting in Ghotki.

Interestingly, Qureshi has opted to remain silent over his future ambitions and with the date of his Ghotki public meeting approaching, he has left for Dubai to keep analysts guessing. “Qureshi is an old friend. We haven’t met as yet but we’ve spoken over the phone and will meet very soon,” Sharif had told reporters at Sukkur airport on Thursday. PML-N sources claim that the meeting will be held on November 22, however no one was ready to confirm the meeting on the record. A PML-N source told Pakistan Today that his party chief thought Qureshi joining the PTI would give a huge boost to Imran Khan’s party, which would further dent the diminishing popularity of the PML-N and the only way to stop Qureshi was to use personal contacts. However, the source said further that there were irritants in Qureshi’s way into the PML-N and the biggest of those was Makhdoom Javed Hashmi. “Both Hashmi and Qureshi are arch rivals and Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani and Javed Hashmi were working on an alliance on both constituencies of the National Assembly falling under Qureshi. Gilani wants to field his brother or son in one of the constituencies while the other would be decided by Hashmi. This is also in the knowledge of Qureshi and he had conveyed his concerns to Shahbaz Sharif in his last meeting,” said the source.

The source said that Qureshi was also mulling over reviving his own faction of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and he had also contacted PPP-SB leader Ghinwa Bhutto, urging her to field her daughter Fatima Bhutto against the Zardari-led PPP. However, the source said Ghinwa had dropped the proposal.




Nawaz using personal contacts to attract Shah Mehmood Qureshi | Pakistan Today | Latest news, Breaking news, Pakistan News, World news, business, sport and multimedia

 

[Tameem]

On a serious note, Qureshi’s decision towards any political party with other factors will eventually very much base on Multan City Power politics in which PMLN is a strong contender besides PPP. Furthermore he has still needs to win his NA-148 seat again by defeating PPP candidate; great risks are involved if he opt to take both these parties simultaneously. PTI may turnout a liability in this chess game of Multan.

So, As per my assessment there are 95% chances that SMQ will join PMLN finally.

And if he does the same….IK have to answer many questions including the responsibility for being a cause of downing his followers morale by prematurely announcing SMQ joining of PTI in the first place.

 

[AstanoshKhan]

And if he does the same….IK have to answer many questions including the responsibility for being a cause of downing his followers morale by prematurely announcing SMQ joining of PTI in the first place.

... and when did IK do that?

SMQ is not an idiot to sail into a sinking ship.

 

[SQ8]

I do believe somebody predicted early on that SMQ will join nawaz..
apparently the issue has less to do with the assets and more to do with the ego's of men.
SMQ may want a larger role in PTI which IK may not be inclined to give...Nawaz however, has no qualms in dividing his party's PR among multiple figures..

 

[Fracker]

ok, if SMQ joins PTI, PTI will get South Punjab and interior sindh regions, If he joins PML-N, PML-n will get same.

Am i missing something? Where are people?

 

[Doctor09]

when it was said the Qureshi is going to join PTI at that time PML(N) supporters came and said Imran is accepting lotaas in his party and but now when it looks that Qureshi is joining PML(N) then same PML(N) supporters is appreciating this ...
what a hypocrisy by PML (N)

 

[Areesh]

And if he does the same….IK have to answer many questions including the responsibility for being a cause of downing his followers morale by prematurely announcing SMQ joining of PTI in the first place.

So everytime IK would have to answer. When will Mian Sahab will answer that why is he ignoring old workers of his party and giving key party position to new comers like SMQ. Or you can't question Mian sahab in your party?

 

[Fracker]

when it was said the Qureshi is going to join PTI at that time PML(N) supporters came and said Imran is accepting lotaas in his party and but now when it looks that Qureshi is joining PML(N) then same PML(N) supporters is appreciating this ...
what a hypocrisy by PML (N)

Not a Hypocrisy, he is still the Loota... Which is why PML-N is also trying and which is why he has been switching parties from some time now

 

[Areesh]

when it was said the Qureshi is going to join PTI at that time PML(N) supporters came and said Imran is accepting lotaas in his party and but now when it looks that Qureshi is joining PML(N) then same PML(N) supporters is appreciating this ...
what a hypocrisy by PML (N)

He is not a lota anymore. Nor is he corrupt or opportunist.

 

[Doctor09]

Actually PML(N)sadhya gayi hai r kuch nai

 

[Omar1984]

Qureshi was Foreign Minister in the current PPP government and was fired by the PPP government because he was not pressured by America and this government to go along with the Raymond Davis fiasco. You can all remember him saying that Raymond Davis is not a Diplomat then BOOM! He's fired by Zardari government on U.S. orders, and then Hina Rabbani Khar became Foreign Minister.

Ganjay brothers also went along with the Raymond Davis fiasco and were pressured by the American and PPP government to accept him as diplomat, PML-N pressured the families of the victims to accept the blood money, and not make a fuss about the situation. Then Ganja Nasharif went to London.


So I dont think Qureshi will join PML-N. Everyone knows PPP and PML-N are the same. By the way, U.S. also wants PML-N to win the next elections because they know PML-N will accept every order that comes from Washington D.C.

 

[Leader]

Qureshi is a power addicted person and PTI may not offer him what he's used to, but again I'd loved to be proved wrong. Interesting times ahead... a frustrated PML-N vs getting more and more popular PTI. Let's see how the Karachi Jalsa goes for PTI - if it becomes just like the one in Lahore - Welcome to Imran Khan as the premier of Pakistan.

that was the first and foremost dispute, he wanted seat of General Secretary, which IK refused infact refused all kind of restructuring of its party positions and offices.

I think he will NOT join PML N. he know he is part of Makhdoom factor, and will win with or without any party from his areas of influence, and then join whosoever is winning.

 

[Meengla]

SMQ is not a 'Lota'. For almost three decades he stood up with the PPP: Under Zia, under Nawaz's two (very anti-PPP) tenures, and under Musharraf.
I don't know why he resigned. May well be because he was not offered the portfolio he really wanted. Well, Zardari wanted a compliant FM and SQM would not oblige him.

BTW, I too now support Imran Khan. But I have a strong feeling that he too would have found a way to defuse the situation and let Raymond Davis go. It is not that PPP and PMLN are 'traitors'. It is because these parties are in power--and people in power love status quo. At any rate, after busting R.D, there 'authorities' in Pakistan calculated that they could use the incident to gain some mileage against Americans--and they did do that.
As to those two dead people: Sorry to say but life is very cheap in Pakistan. In the 'larger national interest', let's not break up with America and let the relatives get a hefty sum of money.
Life is no so black and white, guys.