Pakistan's new balance of power

[mujahideen]

Independent MP-elects asked to join political parties by March 4

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has asked the Independent MP-elects to join political parties by March 4, as the ECP will issue the notification of MP-elects on reserved seats.

The notification of Independent MP-elects has been issued and they can join any political party with in three days, said the Secretary Election Commission.

After the inclusion of Independent MP-elects in political parties, the ECP will announce the share of reserved seats of various political parties as per bagged seats formula.

Independent MP-elects asked to join political parties by March 4

 

[mujahideen]

No objection if MQM joins new govt: 'Q'

NISAR MEHDI

KARACHI - Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) has vowed to continue its political coordination with PML-Q whether the party sit in the opposition or join the coalition government in future.
The new political relationship of the MQM with any party will not undermine the strong political cohesiveness between both the parties,” said PML-Q chief Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain and Deputy Convenor MQM Coordination Committee Dr Farooq Sattar on Sunday, while talking to newsmen after having one-hour long meeting at Nine Zero.
In the meeting which lasted for about 50 minutes, the PML(Q) team was led by its President Ch Shujaat Hussain. He was accompanied by PML(Q) Secretary General Mushahid Hussain Sayed, Engr Amir Muqam, Senator Ghaffar Qureshi, Tariq Hasan Khan, Aleem Adil Shaikh, Bostan Ali Hoti and Amanullah Khan Paracha.
The MQM side was represented by Deputy Convenor of its Rabita Committee, Dr Farooq Sattar, former federal minister Babar Khan Ghauri, Haider Abbas Rizvi, Anwar Alam, Shahid Lateef, Ashfaq Mangi, Dr Aasim, Nek Mohammed and Mumtaz Anwar Baji.
Before the start of the formal talks between the two sides, Ch Shujaat also had a talk with MQM Chief Altaf Hussain in London.
Later talking to members of print and electronic media, PML Chief Shujaat Hussain said Altaf Hussain conveyed his party’s full support to PML and said the MQM had always been with PML in the past and is still with it today and will remain so in future as well.
He said he reminded Altaf Hussain of the days when they too used to come to MQM Headquarter known as “Nine Zero” and remain there till late in the night and sleep in MQM hostel.
Shujaat Hussain said they assured MQM of their unconditional support even if they join the PPP government in Sindh in the larger interest of the Province and its people.
Addressing to media persons PML Secretary General Mushahid Hussain Sayed said PML will have full enjoyment in the Opposition because of the spirit and vigour exhibited by MQM workers on their arrival at MQM Headquarter.
He pointed out that out of 34 million votes cast, the PML coalition of MQM, NPP, MQM, PML-F and PPP-S bagged 11.5 million votes. He said PML topped the position with MQM and PPP on the trail.
In Sindh Province also, he said, the coalition bagged highest number of votes while PPP remained at the second position. He said it is a big factor which will play a role in the coming days.
Mushahid Hussain said it has been decided that PML will play its role in the Opposition and whatever decision is taken by MQM, it will extend full support to them.
He said in the meeting of Central Executive of the party in Islamabad, the party made it clear to play a positive role on issues like health, education, social justice, provincial autonomy, independent foreign policy as well as in the fight against terrorism and extremism.
He said PML firmly believes that strong provinces guarantee a strong Pakistan.
He referred to telephonic talk with Altaf Hussain who, he said, extended all out assurance of their support which they gave in the past and is available today and will continue so in future also.
Addressing the media men, Engr Amir Muqam said during the meeting they extended felicitations to MQM for its glorious win in Sindh and also thanked them on behalf of Pakhtoons for the grand welcome accorded to them by MQM workers.
He said the coalition works for the agenda set by President Pervez Musharraf which envisions a modern and progressive Pakistan and elimination of extremism and terrorism from the country.
He said the PML will continue to work for carrying forward this agenda. He said the majority of people of Pakistan had supported the President in the past and will continue their support for him in future as well.
On the occasion Mushahid Hussain Sayed congratulated MQM Chief Altaf Hussain and said he propagated positive traditions in Pakistan’s history and spoke loudly for the oppressed and suppressed classes of people instead of capitalists and feudals.
Dr Farooq Sattar welcomed Ch Shujaat and Mushahid Hussain and other PML leaders at MQM Headquarter on behalf of MQM Chief Altaf Hussain, the MQM Rabita Committee and the party workers.
He said during talks the PML leaders were clearly told that even if MQM makes new friends, it would not leave its coalition partners and old friends at any cost.
“We will work together for greater national reconciliation”, Farooq Sattar said and added that establishment of a larger national government is inevitable for which they would have contacts with all the political parties.
He said peace and stability and its continuity, promotion of democracy, establishment of a well set politically democratic system, elimination of extremism and terrorism and introduction of fast track social reforms are our priorities.
He said MQM stands for basic social reforms, end to ad-hocism, complete autonomy to the provinces.
Dr Farooq Sattar said the issue of feudalism will also have to be addressed and MQM talked about basic reforms, NFC, water reservoirs and greater say of provinces in the federal subjects and their association in decision- making and which is the true democracy.
Dr Farooq Sattar said MQM has vowed to work for a moderate and democratic Pakistan.
He said MQM will play its role in taking Pakistan out of crisis and will work to take it to an elevated position in the world. He said even if MQM will be in the opposition, it would force the government in power to pursue this agenda.
He announced MQM’s unconditional support and cooperation to all those who would work for the stated priorities and agenda.
Dr Farooq Sattar said even in the Opposition, MQM will play the role of a healthy Opposition and would not waste time by just thumping the desks.
“We will do constructive work and make the treasury benches to start work right from first day”.
Addressing the media men, former federal minister Babar Khan Ghauri said MQM does not look at the seats won by PML-Q but their “first day love” with the party will continue in future.
He said MQM has won the mandate of people and if anyone negates this mandate, then he only insults the people.
On the occasion Mushahid Hussain Sayed referred to his visit to MQM’s media centre and described it highly impressive with provision of state- of- the- art facilities.
He pointed out that the media has a major role to play and the team working at MQM media centre is a highly creative and spirited team. Earlier, on arrival at MQM Headquarter the PML leaders were welcomed by Dr Farooq Sattar, Anwar Alam, Babar Khan Ghauri, Haider Abbas Rizvi and other members of MQM Rabita Committee.
On the occasion a large number of men and women workers of MQM welcomed the visitors with rose petals amidst slogans of Jiay Altaf, Jiay Muttahida and Altaf Hamara Rahbar.
Before the start of formal talks, the visitors had a lunch with Muttehida leaders besides having a telephonic talk with MQM Chief Altaf Hussain.
After the talks the MQM leaders left for Islamabad.

The Nation

 

[mujahideen]

Musharraf trying to thwart coalition: Nawaz

Our Monitoring Desk

PML-N Quaid and former premier Nawaz Sharif has accused President Pervez Musharraf of trying to ‘drive a wedge’ between his PML-N and the PPP to thwart the formation of a coalition government by them.
Nawaz said the PML-N and PPP had come together after the elections to form government despite not having a pre-poll alliance.
The PML-N will support the PPP-led government to complete its full five-year term as the two parties shared common objectives like the restoration of the judiciary and ending the military’s role in politics, he said.
“It is Musharraf, who has been ruling this country for the past eight years wearing a uniform, and I think he is trying to drive a wedge between the two of us (PML-N and PPP),” Nawaz said in an interview with CNN-IBN.
“And he (Musharraf) is again trying his formula of divide and rule. We are not going to fall prey (to that),” he said. “We would rather like to see a full five-year term for the PPP. We will not destabilise their government at all,” he added.
Nawaz said the alliance between his party and the PPP was aimed at putting ‘the country back on the rails’. Asked if the two parties had sunk differences, he said, “Yes, I suppose so.”
Nawaz said the new government should review the causes for the Kargil war, including President Pervez Musharraf’s role, and fix responsibility for the conflict with India.
The Charter of Democracy signed by the PPP and the PML-N committed both parties to setting up a commission to review the Kargil conflict, Nawaz said.
The document also committed the parties to abolishing the National Security Council, making the Inter-Services Intelligence Agency accountable to the civilian government and getting all army officers to declare their assets annually, the PML-N chief said.
“We stand by the Charter. We think it’s an excellent document (and) it must be implemented in letter and spirit. And I have all the intentions to do that,” Nawaz said. “The PPP is committed to that because it bears the signature of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto.”
Asked if he was still committed to the setting up of a commission to look into the causes of Kargil and to fix responsibility, Nawaz replied, “Yes.”
He also said the Charter continued to be binding despite slain former premier Bhutto’s talks on a possible power-sharing arrangement with Musharraf.
Asked if a possible probe into the Kargil affair was another way to target Musharraf, Nawaz said: “It’s not targeting. It is straightening out things. We have to put our house in order and we want to put our house in order.”
He also did not rule out the possibility of taking legal action against Musharraf for deposing him in a military coup in 1999, barely three months after the end of the Kargil conflict, and for abrogating the Constitution.
“Somebody will have to be taken to task. After all, abrogating the Constitution is not a small crime. Does it happen in India?” he said. “What is the harm if any such action is initiated?’’
Asked if he would actually initiate legal action against Musharraf, Nawaz said “Who knows? Well, time will tell. I think the country has suffered enough at the hands of these dictators.”
Nawaz repeated his call for Musharraf to quit in the wake of the defeat of his supporters in the elections. “That is why we are saying repeatedly, ‘Mr Musharraf step down.’ There may be a safe exit now available to you.”
PPI adds: Nawaz Sharif has pledged to raise the issue of ‘Tahafiz-i-Namos-i-Rasalat’ (Protection of respect of Hazrat Muhammad-PBUH) at all forums, saying that it is a collective responsibility of all Muslim world to take steps for safeguarding the respect of Allah’s last Messenger.
Addressing a seminar in memory of Mufti Muhammad Hussain Naeemi at Jamia Naeemia Lahore on Sunday, Sharif said: “We can get rid of American slavery permanently if the nation expresses solidarity. Musharraf has converted Pakistan into an American Colony.”
Lashing out at President Musharraf’s ongoing policies, the former premier said in Pakistan practically the American policies were being pursued and infighting within the community being encouraged which has ruined the ‘army as an institution’.
He declared to formulate beneficial policies for the masses with the cooperation of the PPP in Centre. In Punjab, he said, his brother Mian Shahbaz Sharif would serve the people as he had been acquited in a fake case allegedly instituted by President Musharraf and Chaudhry brothers.
Declaring atomic scientist Dr Abdul Qadeer Khan as hero, he called for his immediate release.
Sharif paid tribute to the PML-N workers and Ulema for not bending before a dictator during the last eight years and performed excellently to rout the pro-Musharraf Q-League.
He said Pervez Musharraf and Q-Leaguers were begging for power sharing but hand would not be shook with them. Proud Q-League stalwarts, he said, proved a wall of sand and had shattered.
On the occasion, MNA-elect Ayaz Sadiq, Renowned thinker Majeed-ur-Rehman Shami, Hafiz Shafiqur Rehman, Pir Ijaz Hashmi, Khalid Habib Elahi advocate, Syed Amin-ul-Hassnat, Mehfooz-ur-Rehman Naeemi and Dr Sarfraz Naeem also delivered speeches and demanded the new government should make “Tahafiz-i-Namos-i-Rasalat” a part of its agenda.

The Nation

 

[mujahideen]

Two-thirds majority bids foiled

Maqbool Malik

ISLAMABAD - President Pervez Musharraf has been successful in ruining prospect of PPP, PML-N and ANP to make two-thirds majority in the National Assembly, TheNation reliably learnt on Sunday.Sources claimed that President Musharraf has been successful in making good use of his administrative arms, the governors, in the four provinces in frustrating PPP, PML-N and ANP attempts to secure two-thirds majority in the House.
Apart from MNAs-elect from FATA, President has also won the support of several independents-elect in the National Assembly through governors of Punjab and NWFP. Efforts are still underway to win backing of some small parliamentary groups in the National Assembly including JUI-F, PML-F and NPP.
Sources further claimed these groups are being propped up in a manner that they should continue playing as neutral forces and would help foil move of ruling coalition seeking to impeach the President.
President has also been successful in forging a formidable defence with the help of former ruling alliance, the PML-Q and its allied parties MQM and PPP-S, as a strong opposition in the National Assembly.

The Nation

 

[mujahideen]

Daniyal blames Chaudhrys for defeat

Monday, March 03, 2008
By Dilshad Azeem

ISLAMABAD: As Musharraf's close ones faced humiliating defeat in the elections, a number of his past mouthpieces also succumbed to the disliking of the leadership of the Pakistan Muslim League-Q.

"The central leadership of the PML-Q with Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi at the top is main reason behind the defeat of many those considered to be close to Pervez Musharraf in the past five years," is what one of his mouthpieces said.

Former ministers, Hamayum Akhtar Khan, Khurshid Mehmud Kasuri, Dr Sher Afgan Niazi and National Reconstruction Bureauís former chairman Chaudhry Daniyal Aziz are amongst those against whom the PML-Q leadership had grudges because they were close to Musharraf.

"There was a direct interference of the Chaudhrys in my constituency as they awarded me ticket for face-saving but backed an independent candidate against me through official and political machinery," Daniyal Aziz told The News here on Sunday.

Daniyal could not survive despite being amongst the creators of the Local Government system about which there had been lot of hue and cry that it was influencing the elections.

"Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi's planning to blackout me from the political scene surfaced with the submission of the nomination from his close associate and notorious NAB proclaimed offender. At the same time, he also deployed officials of his choice to defeat me," the former NRB chairman alleged.

Daniyal had won the elections 2002 as an independent candidate from his hometown constituency of Narowal but joined the Q-League ranks, what he said was, to protect the local government system after Tanweer Hussain Naqvi vacated the NRB chiefís post.

Giving reasons for his defeat with margin of 7,000 votes, he said he was targeted mainly because he was close to Musharraf. "Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi was annoyed with me since Musharraf stated in a political meeting that he would have appointed me (Daniyal Aziz) as the prime minister of the country if everything was to be done in accordance with his wishes."

Daniyal charged that DPO Ahmed Mubarrak, DIG Syed Tujamal, DSP Virk and DSP Traffic Nasir Jameel supported his rival, an independent candidate installed by the Chaudhrys, on the directives of Pervaiz Elahi. "The opponents were provided with gundas as well as police force to keep me out of politics."

Chaudhry Muhammad Tariq Anees, an independent, was declared successful from the Narowal-II constituency with 45,097 votes against Daniyal Aziz's 37,138. The Nawaz League candidate obtained 22,369 votes from the same seat.

Daniyal Aziz has challenged the election results and the matter is now before the Lahore High Court for hearing on March 5 after the same was turned down by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

"I have all the proofs that I will present before the court so that the rigging on the part of my opponent on the behest of the Chaudhrys can be exposed," the former NRB chairman said.

Daniyal blames Chaudhrys for defeat

 

[mujahideen]

Winners not ready for taking over power

Monday, March 03, 2008
By Tariq Butt

ISLAMABAD: Winning political parties are hesitant to declare their nominees for the offices of the prime minister and chief ministers (except the North West Frontier Province) for being shy of the due homework and†lack of proper structures of leadership.

This week, however, is going to see all the top nominations - the prime minister, chief ministers, speakers and deputy speakers - coming out in the open.

The victors are behaving and holding back the names of their candidates as if their electoral triumphs caught them unawares. Another reason behind the delay in nominating the prime minister and chief ministers is that they fear internal strife if they immediately announce the fortunate lot.

The finalization of the name of the Pakistan People's Party (PPP)'s premier has been scandalously delayed with the party leadership allowing the proliferation of speculation about different horses. Even after the issuance of the official notification of the Feb 18 elections twelve days after the polling, the PPP's lucky man is not conclusively known.

Its case in regard to picking up its chief minister in Sindh, where the PPP is in a sure position to form government, is no different than its state at the federal level. It is indecisive with nearly half a dozen potential aspirants engaged in lobbying. Nisar Khuhro, Agha Siraj Durrani and Manzoor Wasan, to name a few, are in the race.

It was never the case during the life of assassinated Benazir Bhutto obviously because of her complete command and hold over the party. She used to take decisions about all top nominations without any delay.

In the NWFP, the winning Awami National Party (ANP)'s chief minister has been publicly declared. But it is a case of all in one family. One elder is heading the ANP while his nephew, Amir Haider Hoti, whose name was unheard of in the politics of the party and the province till his nomination, has been chosen as its candidate for the position of the chief minister. It has made many faces sullen among the followers of Bacha Khan. Services of several senior ANP leaders particularly Bilours got no attention during the finalization of the name of the chief minister.

In the Punjab, the largest party, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), which will form government, has held back the name of its interim chief minister, who will be in office till the election of its president Shahbaz Sharif to the provincial assembly. It is also going to be a case all in one family as a close relative of Sharifs has been tipped as the stopgap chief minister.

The Balochistan scenario is confused as before as independents hold the key to formation of government by any major party. The PML-Q, which emerged as the largest party in the provincial assembly, has at least two candidates for the office of the chief minister including Jam Yousuf and Yar Mohammad Rind. The contestants of other parties including the PPP are not yet known.

While the NWFP has taken the lead in choosing its chief minister, the opposition, PML-Q, too has done so as it has named its leaders of opposition, Chaudhry Pervez Elahi and Hamid Nasir Chattah, in the National Assembly and Punjab Assembly respectively.

Winners not ready for taking over power

 

[mujahideen]

PML-Q spins into rough and tough of politics

Monday, March 03, 2008
By our correspondent

ISLAMABAD: A number of Pakistan Muslim League-Q leaders will be learning the art of opposition politics for the first time in their political life, and some of them may find the new role rough and tough.

"Since my entry into the parliamentary politics and uninterrupted presence there since 1985, I have never worked as an opposition MP though my contribution in the House proceedings has been tremendous," an old Leaguer, aligned with the former ruling PML-Q, told The News.

"I don't know how I would act in the opposition as I am unaware of the intricacies of the opposition politics and can't shout at the top of my voice as the opposition MPs have to do at times," he said.

The PML-Q inducted many new faces in the Senate on the recommendation of one influential person or the other. They included a large battalion of women as well. Most of them belonging to well-to-do families, they are likely to be uneasy while sitting on the opposition benches.

During the term of the PML-Q government, Barrister Wasim Sajjad was the leader of the House. It is, however, not known whether he would be given the new role as the leader of the opposition if the PML-Q's cardholder, Muhammadmian Soomro, is voted out as the chairman of the Senate.

Since his entry into the politics, Senator Tariq Azim, the PML-Q Information Secretary and former minister of State for Information, will also be savouring the flavour of sitting on the opposition for the first time. He is expected to hold the ground unlike a number of his colleagues.

To perform well and remain steadfast in the opposition will not be new for PML-Q's Chaudhrys ñ Shujaat Hussain and Pervaiz Elahi. After a long time, they had tasted the prison during the tenure of the Benazir Bhutto government for six months. They were lodged in the Adiala Jail, Rawalpindi.

At the time, Pervaiz Elahi was the acting leader of the opposition in the Punjab Assembly in place of Shahbaz Sharif, who had gone abroad for medical treatment and stayed there for months when Ms Bhutto was the prime minister.

The elder Chaudhry, Zahoor Elahi, had an impressive record as an aggressive opposition leader during the Seventies. The Zulfikar Ali Bhutto regime had kept him in jail most of its time. When his government was dismissed in July 1977 with the imposition of the marital law by General Ziaul Haq, all the adult members of the Chaudhry family happened to be in prison. They were immediately freed by the new government.

It is not known whether Senator Kamil Ali Agha, who was introduced in the parliamentary politics by the PML-N when he was elected to the National Assembly on its ticket in 1996, would be able to bear the heat of the opposition benches. He had been a vociferous supporter of the PML-Q during the Sharifs exile as he was of the PML-N in the past.

The PML-Q will really be in the opposition now as it would find the federal and the provincial governments hostile. There will be none in these setups who would be willing to console the PML-Q leaders and MPs, except the Presidency that may continue to comfort them in their hour of trial.

PML-Q spins into rough and tough of politics

 

[mujahideen]

APDM not sidelined despite poll boycott: Haye Baloch

Monday, March 03, 2008
By Mumtaz Alvi

ISLAMABAD: A central leader of the All Parties Democratic Movement (APDM) on Sunday said that their election boycott decision had not sidelined the nationalist forces from the mainstream politics and instead they had emerged stronger.

Balochistan National Party's (BNP) central president, former Senator Dr Hayee Baloch, spoke at length about the APDM's polls-related strategy, its future line of action and that the winning mainstream parties wanted to resist the establishment's divide and rule policy.

"Let me make it very clear that the APDM's agenda is a reflection of the masses' sentiments. It is not confined to Balochistan or any other province. It is federation-centred," he strongly argued while talking to The News here at Parliament House.

Dr Baloch said that the movement's agenda and policies had been endorsed by all the democratic parties, including the Pakistan Peopleís Party (PPP), the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) and the Awami National Party (ANP).

He pointed out that PPP, PML-N and ANP had complete unanimity of views with the APDM on the independence of the judiciary, the rule of law, unfettered democracy, end to operation in Balochistan and elsewhere, and release of all political prisoners, including Akhtar Mengal.

In this connection, he made a mention of Asif Ali Zardari's recent meeting with the APDM leadership during which the PPP leader assured them of working for the realisation of goals the democratic forces had set. Dr Baloch said that they had noticed a realisation during Zardari's discourse during which he had conceded their weaknesses and the fact that they were still not strong enough to go for confrontation with the establishment right from the beginning.

Looking happy over the startling win of PPP, PML-N and ANP, Dr. Hayee said that he was optimistic about these three partiesí possible coalition government coming up to the smaller provinces' expectations.

"These three parties will have to set aside their personal or party liking and disliking and only then they will be able to work with commitment for a true federation," he maintained and added that so far, they had shown maturity in their moves.

He pointed out that this was for the first time that the people had given mandate to the parties that had a totally diverse ideology, but the parties were willing and determined to deliver. To a question, the National Party leader said that the establishment was making frantic moves to fan differences among Zardari, Nawaz and Asfandyar Wali and impede the formation of their government at the centre as well as in the provinces.

About the future of President Pervaiz Musharraf, he said that the February 18 general election was a clear referendum against his eight-year rule and his supporters' policies. He reminded President Musharraf of his pledge to quit, if his allies lost in the electoral process. When asked about the APDMís future line of action, he said that they would increase their interaction with the people and make them aware of their rights and bring them in a peaceful democratic process.

He noted that it was the provincesí constitutional right to have control over their resources, but the centre had been denying them, adding insult to injury. The APDM leader continued that the status quo, which had caused massive damage to Pakistan as a federation, must be broken and it was high time to do that, as all political parties shared consensus on giving greater autonomy to the provinces.

APDM not sidelined despite poll boycott: Haye Baloch

 

[mujahideen]

No decision yet for top slot in Sindh, Centre: Qaim

Monday, March 03, 2008
By our correspondent

HYDERABAD: The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Sindh President Syed Qaim Ali Shah on Sunday said his party had not taken any decision regarding the parliamentary leader in the Sindh Assembly and for the top slot at the Centre.

He added that the PPP delegation had visited the Nine-Zero and held a meeting with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) leadership as a goodwill gesture, adding he hoped the MQM delegation would visit the Bilawal House soon.

Addressing a news conference at the residence of MPA Syed Ali Nawaz Shah Rizvi, the PPP Sindh president said that no decision was yet made for the top slot in Sindh and at the Centre. However, the party leadership would make such decisions very soon, he added.

Qaim Shah said that only a day had passed after the Election Commission of Pakistan issued the official gazette of the successful legislators of February 18 election, hence there was no haste in announcing the name of parliamentary leader of the National as well as of the provincial assemblies.

Shah said the PPP delegation held a preliminary meeting with the MQM leadership as guided by the PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari so as a consensus point could be reached for the formation of the national government. He clarified that the meeting with the MQM was not aimed at discussing the power-sharing formula but its motivating force was to improve the atmosphere in Sindh and help restore the real democracy in the country. He said people had reposed their confidence and hopes in the PPP candidates. He added that in order to come up with the expectations of the people of Sindh, his party would try to resolve the main issues of Sindh on priority. He said each political party had its own programme but the PPP believed in talks with all, including the MQM, to avail maximum cooperation for the resolution of the major issues confronting the Sindh province as well as the federation of Pakistan.

The PPP Sindh president avoided responding to some tough questions on the PPP-MQM coalition in Sindh and the opposition being faced by the PPP within the party circles.

Qaim Shah said the people of Sindh gave their verdict in February 18 election, enabling the PPP to win two-thirds seats from Sindh. He emphasised the PPP was moving ahead with its policies and guiding principles as laid down by the party founder Shaheed ZA Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto. He said his party would pursue the water accord of 1991 and would not allow the construction of the mega water projects till a consensus among the four provinces was reached.

No decision yet for top slot in Sindh, Centre: Qaim

 

[mujahideen]

Zardari adds two more CEC members to get grip on PPP

By Rauf Klasra

ISLAMABAD: Two more members have been quietly added to the Central Executive Committee (CEC) of the PPP by Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, raising many eyebrows as the CEC would soon meet to pick the man who would be the next prime minister.

The two new members of the CEC are Dr Israr Shah and Pir Mazharul Haq. Zardari had earlier appointed Nafis Siddiqi, Dr Fehmida Mirza, Sultan Mehmud Qazi and Farooq Naik as members of the CEC.

Talking to this correspondent at Zardari House on Friday evening, Zardari himself had confirmed that he intended to take the issue of nomination of the future prime minister to the CEC.

When this correspondent asked Zardari whether he would make the decision to nominate the future prime minister by taking into confidence a few party leaders or would take all the members of the CEC into confidence, he said he would not take the decision on his own and would take the issue to the CEC. PPPP spokesman Farhatullah Babar told The News that the party chairman had the power to make appointments of new members of the CEC without seeking the opinion from the sitting members of the committee.

During the last ten days, Zardari, who according to many, seems in a big rush to make appointments before the countdown starts in the CEC over the name of the future prime minister, has nominated six new members and most are considered to be his loyalists.

A party source claimed that Zardari was in a hurry because he knew that he would soon be required to seek the approval of the name of the prime ministerial candidate of his choice and apparently he lacked the required numbers to push his decision through.

Sources said Makhdoom Amin Fahim enjoyed strong backing among members of CEC particularly from Sindh and the additional appointments from Sindh would help Mr Zardari. The CEC sources claimed was already divided after Mr Zardari dropped hints that the next prime minister could be from Punjab, and Yousuf Raza Gillani, Shah Mehmud Qureshi and Ahmed Mukhtar were already busy in lobbying to win the votes of members of the CEC.

One member of the CEC told The News that these days they were coming to know about these appointments through the media as none of them was informed or taken into confidence. The member said Benazir Bhutto did the same thing but she used to give the whole process a democratic colour by seeking the opinion of members.

Zardari adds two more CEC members to get grip on PPP

 

[mujahideen]

Shahbaz to contest bypolls, become CM: Nawaz Sharif

Monday, March 03, 2008
By Our Correspondent

LAHORE- PML-N Quaid Mian Nawaz Sharif has said that Shahbaz Sharif would contest by-elections as he has been acquitted in Sabzazar case.

Speaking at a seminar on Tahafuz-e-Namus-e-Risalat organized by Jamia Naeemia on Sunday, Nawaz said that Shahbaz would be elected as the chief minister of the province. He said Shahbaz Sharif has been acquitted and that he will become the chief minister of the province after PML-N forms government in Punjab.

The PML-N Quaid said that the pro-Musharraf PML witnessed a shameful defeat in the recently held polls despite spending millions of rupees on its publicity campaign. He criticized President Musharraf for violating the constitution and making the army carry out operations against Pakistanis through his wrong policies.

Nawaz said the retired military general not only violated the constitution but also waged a war in the country. He said he threatened Nawab Akbar Bugti and warned him of dire consequences if he did not obey him (Musharraf). He said a clear example of people’s anger against army was the recent killing of a senior military general. “We had to work courageously to make Pakistan stronger,” he said.

He said people who used to say that Nawaz would not return before 2010 had seen that Nawaz had returned before 2008. He said the PML-N had a significant role in the progress of the country but PML-Q leaders did nothing for the nation. He said another era of development would begin in the country after PML-N comes into power.

He said the PPP had won the largest number of seats in the recently held elections and we would provide complete support to the PPP at the Centre and it would support the PML-N in Punjab. He said the PML-N was committed to the cause of independent judiciary.

He said he remembered the days he had spent in exile and he would always remember the love and affection people had for him. “It has been proved who people want to rule the federation,” he said. Nawaz Sharif said it was the result of the blessings and prayers of the people that his party had won a large number of seats all over the country and especially in Punjab and at Centre.

He said that PML-N would remember all of its promises made during its election campaign.

Condemning the recent wave of terrorism, he said that it was the outcome of the poor policies of former rulers. He said the people of the country were questioning the Musharraf-led regime as to what it had done for the welfare of the countrymen.

He said Jamia Naeemia was founded by our elders and he also praised Dr Sarfaraz Naeemi for his struggle for Namus-e-Risalat. He said Naeemi was arrested during the tenure of previous PML government and similar hardships were also faced by Mufti Mohammed Hussain in the past.

Dr Sarfraz Naeemi, Khawaja Saad Rafique, Ayaz Sadiq, Mohsin Latif, Zaeem Qadri, Ejaz Hashmi were also present on the occasion.

Shahbaz to contest bypolls, become CM: Nawaz Sharif

 

[mujahideen]

Law and order to be ANP’s biggest challenge in NWFP


* Analysts claim that foreign role in bombings cannot be ruled out
* ANP info secretary says party won polls by calling for peace

By Manzoor Ali Shah

PESHAWAR: The incoming Awami National Party (ANP)-led government in the NWFP is expected to face an uphill task in maintaining law and order, in addition to a myriad of other problems, security analysts and politicians said on Sunday. The ANP candidate for NWFP chief minister, Ameer Haider Hoti, announced after his nomination that his government would seek a dialogue with the Taliban to ensure peace in the province. However, incidents of terrorism have surged in the past few days and several people have died. According to analysts, the law and order situation is now being seen as a test for the new government. Dr Azmat Hayat Khan of the University of Peshawar’s Area Study Centre told Daily Times that the recent attacks on police in the province were meant to create instability and demoralise the police force. Foreign hands: “The involvement of foreign hands in these incidents can not be ruled out. They want an unstable and weak Pakistan. No religious or political forces could be involved in such things,” he claimed. He said the new government would face several challenges, but the foremost would be to restore law and order in the region. Former Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) Security secretary Brigadier (r) Mahmood Shah said the ANP government could solve the menace of terrorism. “Pakhtoon society is a traditional society and they have to use jirgas and other traditional elements to restore peace in the area,” he said. He said the clerics are a force to be reckoned with in Pakhtoon society, adding that they were still subordinate to the ‘Khan’. “The leading factor behind their (the ANP) getting votes was anti-terrorism efforts. It is crucial for them to control the province’s law and order,” he added. Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Secretary General Maulana Shaujaul Mulk claimed that President Pervez Musharraf’s slogans of ‘Pakistan first’ had caused anarchy in the country. He alleged that the current lawlessness was a result of the former government’s faulty policies. He said the ANP had shown a willingness to hold a dialogue, and if they were to turn to force it would be a tragedy. “There are also external elements that do not want peace in the country, and the recent spate of blasts is a part of this,” he said. For peace: ANP Information Secretary Zahid Khan said that the ANP had won the election in the name of peace. “The party will do its best for the restoration of peace in the province and will foil any conspiracies [against peace],” he said. He said the hidden hands that had become active in the province would be defeated through jirgas. The Pakhtoons could not be oppressed by cowardly acts of terrorism, he added.

Courtesy Daily Times

 

[mujahideen]

No conspiracy against democracy from Awan-e-Saddar: Spokesman

ISLAMABAD: The spokesman of the president General Pervez Musharraf Rashid Qureshi has said that no conspiracy was being hatched against the democracy from Awan-e-Saddar. The spokesman of the president stated this in a statement issued here on Monday. The election winners still engaged in fierce efforts to form national and provincial governments and there is no interference from the President in the process, the spokesman said. The president can summon the Nation Assembly session with 10 to 15 days, he informed.

Courtesy Geo

 

[mujahideen]

Violence spirals as Pakistan awaits new government

By Zeeshan Haider

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) - A spate of suicide attacks by Islamist militants could spark a war of revenge among ethnic Pashtun tribesmen in Pakistan's northwest just as moderate, secular political parties appear poised for power, analysts say.

The region is already regarded as the main battleground in the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda, and the stakes are raised because of Pakistan's status as a nuclear-armed state.

The militants want to destabilize President Pervez Musharraf, and convince Pakistanis his alliance with the United States is the root cause of conflict in the area.

For their part, Pakistan's Western allies want its new prime minister and government, once they emerge from the hung parliament returned by voters in an election on February 18, to provide the democratic legitimacy for the war on terrorism that Musharraf has been unable to engender.

"You may not question President Pervez Musharraf's policy on terrorism, you may say it's all right but the point is nobody is ready to own this policy," said Talat Masood, a former general and security analyst.

"The greatest advantage of the civilian government will be that the policy will be owned by the people of Pakistan."

Well over 500 people have been killed in militant-related violence so far this year, but the campaign of suicide attacks began after troops stormed the Red Mosque in Islamabad to put down a militant student movement in the heart of the capital.

While the remote Waziristan region has seen the worst of the violence over the past few years, in recent months hitherto dormant tribal areas have erupted in violence.

At least 40 people were killed on Friday in a suicide attack in the Swat district of North West Frontier Province (NWFP) during the funeral of a policeman hours after he was killed in a roadside attack.

On Sunday, another 40 people died and scores were wounded when a young bomber blew himself up as hundreds of tribesmen left a jirga, or council, that had discussed how to restore peace in Darra Adam Kheil, a tribal region near Peshawar, the NWFP capital.

The army has been fighting militants in Swat since October, and just last week had claimed it had cleared all but a few pockets of resistance.

SOCIETY'S DESCENT

But attacks like a roadside bomb that killed 13 members of a wedding party, including the bride, on February 22, again in Swat, demonstrated the insecurity ordinary families are encountering.

Analysts noted a "dangerous trend" towards attacks that struck at the heart of Pashtun society.

"These are direct attacks on Pashtun society," said Mahmood Shah, a former security chief for the tribal areas.

"All institutions, which represent Pashtun society, the mosque, a wedding, a funeral or a jirga, they have all been targeted.

"They want to bomb the entire Pashtun society into submission."

Pashtuns, whose lands straddle both sides of the border between Pakistan and Afghanistan, live to a code of honor, commonly known as Pashtunwali, that calls on menfolk to take revenge if a family member is killed.

The attacks on the funeral and the jirga could trigger inter-tribal feuds, in a region where guns are commonly referred to as "Pashtun jewellery".

"This situation could ignite tribal enmities. This will create a very explosive and dangerous situation for the government," said Rahimullah Yusufzai, a newspaper editor and an expert on Pashtun affairs.

The escalating violence has raised concern among Western countries about the stability of the nuclear-armed state amid the growing unpopularity of U.S. ally Musharraf.

The recent attacks came as winners of the February 18 elections were negotiating to cobble together a coalition government.

There have been a spate of attacks in the run-up to elections but polling day passed off with far less violence than feared.

The Pakistan People's Party (PPP) of Benazir Bhutto, the country's most liberal politician who was killed in an attack blamed on al Qaeda-linked militants on December 27, emerged as the largest group in the National Assembly, dealing a humiliating defeat to Musharraf's allies.

A moderate Pashtun party, the Awami National Party, won the most seats in the NWFP assembly by trouncing Islamist parties and is likely to lead the provincial government in a coalition with the PPP, but if they fail to quell the violence voters will soon become disenchanted, analysts said.

(Editing by Simon Cameron-Moore and Jerry Norton)

 

[mujahideen]

Coalition accord in two days: Nisar: PML-N against MQM’s participation in govt

By Inamullah Khattak

ISLAMABAD, March 2: The Pakistan Muslim League-N on Sunday said the PPP, PML-N and ANP would finalise a power-sharing agreement in two days. He, however, added that his party would not be a part of any coalition with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Addressing a press conference here, PML-N’s Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said: “The president has made the Army House a hub of conspiracies against political parties by holding regular and unnecessary meetings with PML-Q leaders, which is an insult to the people’s mandate.”

The PML-N leader urged President Pervez Musharraf to vacate the Army House and avoid meeting leaders of the party which had no mandate.

He accused the Election Commission of manipulating poll results and said it had not taken any action on complaints filed by the PML-N and had instead withheld results of some of its candidates.

He said the three coalition partners were heading towards unanimity of views on all issues. It has been decided that we (the PML-N) will support the PPP at the centre and it will support us in Punjab.

Both the parties, he said, were in constant touch to iron out differences on controversial issues. Reiterating PML-N’s reservations about the PPP’s decision to form a coalition government with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) in Sindh, he said his party’ support for the PPP was unconditional.

Mr Khan also called for early convening of the National Assembly session, adding the number of coalition members in the lower house had increased to 175 and it would continue to rise in coming days.

Mr Khan said that the PML-N would not take oath under the Provisional Constitution Order. Our stance is very clear. We will take oath under the original 1973 Constitution, he said.

Coalition accord in two days: Nisar: PML-N against MQM’s participation in govt -DAWN - Top Stories; March 03, 2008