KARACHI: The Pakistan government on Friday released 45 Indian fishermen, including three children and three other disabled persons.

Ansar Burney and activists of Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum (PFF) received the freed fishermen, who later left Karachi by a bus to reach Wagah Border, Lahore. They will be handed over to Indian authorities at the Wagah border on Saturday.

Earlier, Prime Minister Justice (R) Mir Hazar Khan Khoso announced to release 51 Indian fishermen on humanitarian grounds as a gesture of goodwill. These prisoners have already served their sentences.

However, the government released 45 fishermen, as six others have yet to complete their term of sentence. These fishermen were caught under the common crime of violating sea territory and served time in jail for seven to nine months.

The 42 fishermen were released from Malir jail, while three others were in Juvenile Jail, Karachi.

Among the released fishermen were three minor children, including Vipal son of Raja Bamaniya, Ramesh son of Varjan and Akshay son of Nanu. The children had the similar stories, saying they belong to poor families and being the only bread-earners of the family they earn living through this job. After a seven month stay in Pakistani jails, away from their family, they were happy after being released.

Fishing is their family profession, they said. They do not have a better alternative to earn. Their parents are unable to work; hence the conditions forced them to leave their education and join fishing for their livelihood.

They narrated horrible tales, while they were caught by border security forces and put in jail for several months.

Disabled persons narrating the plight said they cannot perform hard work. They joined boats and helped crew members in pulling nets and earned little to run their families.

There were a total of 479 Indian fishermen in Pakistani jails, out of which 45 were released, while others are still waiting to return to their homes. There are 496 Pakistanis in Indian jails, including 223 fishermen.

Among the hold-ups in issuing a gazetted appointment of the elected representatives are the multiple cases of re-polling and re-counting are in the pipeline.

In Sanghar, the court has ordered re-polling at PS-81 after a petition was filed by Jam Madad Ali Khan of the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional who challenged the results of the winning candidate, Pakistan Peoples Party’s Muhammad Khan Junejo – the latter secured 35,452 votes while the former managed to bank 34,113 votes. The ECP has, however, yet to fix a date for the re-polls in the constituency despite the court’s orders.

The election commission also has to announce the dates for holding elections on those seats where polling was terminated due to the death of a contesting candidate.

In total, elections on three seats of the Sindh Assembly and one of the National Assembly were canceled in Sindh.  In Karachi, Shakil Ahmed of the Mohajir Qaumi Movement – Haqiqi (MQM-H) who was nominated by the party for PS-95 (Orangi) was gunned down before May 11 following which polling on the seat did not take place. Similarly, the election commission had terminated the election in Mirpurkhas following the death of Waqar Buland, an independent candidate for PS-64.

Tipping the scales

Tharparkar has become a disputed territory in Sindh with some contestants challenging the results in court and others approaching the ECP for recounting of votes, ultimately leading to ECP’s announcement that re-elections will be held at certain polling stations in PS-62 and PS-63.

The same area is waiting for the result of the National Assembly seats of NA-229 and NA-230.

Talking to The Express Tribune, Sindh Election Commissioner SM Tariq Qadri admitted that the election commission had no other option but to withhold the results following the complaints at some of the polling stations in Tharparkar and other districts. According to him, the ECP has fixed June 1 for re-polls in Tharparkar and other areas of Sindh.

He listed Thatta, Kashmore and Shikarpur among the areas where doubts have been raised about the credibility of the results. Giving the example of the National Peoples Party (NPP), Qadri said that recounting was also tipping the scales for some parties. The NPP initially secured three Sindh Assembly and two National Assembly seats but after the recounting process, Arif Mustafa Jatoi of the party lost PS-22 (Naushero Feroze).

“The post-election reshuffling has created problems for us in order to issue the official notification of the winning candidates,” he said. He made it clear, however, that the process would no longer be delayed and that the elected representatives will be notified within 24 hours.

Order of the house

The duty of summoning the Sindh Assembly session oath taking rests on the shoulders of the assembly speaker. “We cannot summon the session of the Sindh Assembly until or unless the election commission issues the notification of elected representatives,” said Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Ahmed Khuhro. “After the notification is issued, the session may be called within 21 days but we plan to hold it as soon as possible.”

According to Khuhro, the incumbent speaker will administer the oath to the newly elected members. The election for the speaker and deputy speaker is normally held the next day in the assembly after which the newly elected speaker administers the oath to the deputy speaker.

Later, election for the leader of the house (chief minister) takes place.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 23^rd, 2013.

KARACHI: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which won a majority of seats in Sindh, has finalised a power sharing formula for forming a coalition government in the province along with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM).

Per details from sources with knowledge of the development, the incoming government will have a relatively smaller cabinet as compared to the outgoing government which had 50 cabinet members. The number of advisers will also be limited to five.

Sources added that the new government will have between 18 to 19 member cabinet. Of these the PPP will retain up to 11 ministries. The coalition partner MQM will be offered up to seven slots including minister portfolios and advisory positions.

The PPP had said that after 18th amendment, they will field a smaller cabinet. The 18th amendment stipulates that a cabinet has to be 11 per cent of the total strength of the assembly.

The party has also decided to settle upon bringing back Syed Qaim Ali Shah for a record third term as the Sindh chief minister. It is undecided on whether former Sindh Assembly Speaker Nisar Khuhro will return for a second successive term or will the Speaker duties be handed to Mir Hazar Bijrani. Either of them will be a senior minister.

Among the names that have been proposed for the PPP cabinet will be Agha Siraj Durrani, Owais Muzzaffar, Sharmeela Farooqui (reserve seat for women), Makhdoom Rafiqueuz Zaman (former district nazim Hyderabad), Jam Mehtab Dahar, Hasnain Mirza, Sharjeel Memon, and Manzoor Wasan.

Durrani, while talking to The Express Tribune said that negotiations with the MQM are expected to begin in a couple of days and that the PPP wanted to take them on board. “I am 100% sure MQM will join us.”

The finer details of the plan will be ironed out once President Asif Ali Zardari comes to Karachi later in the week.

Syed Qaim Ali Shah, known to his family members as ‘Mitho baba’ (sweet father) is the frontrunner for the slot of chief minister and sources in PPP told The Express Tribune that the party would officially nominate him for the post soon. Senior PPP leaders are saying he’s the best man for the job given his past experience and the success of the PPP in Sindh during the May 11 elections. This success, they say, was due to their performance.

Independent observers, however, paint a very different picture, blasting both the PPP and Shah for failing to maintain law and order and good governance in the province.

Soon after the party’s proposal Shah, who is also PPP Sindh president, started approaching his past coalition partners, especially the MQM, to form a provincial government. Bargaining has reportedly begun on portfolios in the upcoming cabinet.

Talking to The Express Tribune, recently elected PPP MNA Ayaz Soomro, said the party has not yet finalised the next chief minister, but adding that Qaim Ali Shah is definitely under consideration. “The media has created hype and has already allotted portfolios to some of our newly elected MPAs, which has not yet been discussed. This is not fair,” he added.

Qaim Ali Shah, who belongs to district Khairpur, has been a PPP loyalist since the party’s inception and, apart from being elected as an MPA several times, has also been an MNA and a senator. He has also served as federal minister for industries and Kashmir Affairs in Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s cabinet in the 1970s.

When the PPP swept Sindh in the 1988 elections, Shah became chief minister. He continued his job for three to four months until he was replaced by Aftab Shaban Mirani. He regained the position in 2008, and held it for five years

While Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani, Nisar Khuhro, Makhdoom Rafique ul Zaman and Makhdoom Zameel-uz-Zaman are also being tipped for the CM slot, the party is giving maximum support to Shah.

Sources in the PPP say Shah’s name was first floated as a possible speaker of the Sindh Assembly during a high-level meeting in Bilawal House. Shah objected, saying “I cannot properly hear. It will be difficult for me to handle the session,” He then proposed Nisar Khuhro as speaker. “Khuhro will be fit for a second consecutive tenure as Sindh Assembly speaker,” he said.

Apart from experience and unquestioned loyalty, another thing that goes in Shah’s favour is the fact that there are no serious allegations against him and that he won’t rock the boat.

Though a few lobbies of the party are opposing him, sources say Owais Muzaffar, who was recently elected as MPA from Thatta, and MNA Faryal Talpur, the sister of President Asif Ali Zardari are among those who are backing him.

However, some say his appointment would be a temporary one, and that a new chief minister would be appointed after a few months. Some also point to Shah’s age and health as the reason behind this ‘temporary’ option.

However, Soomro says Shah’s health is not a problem. “All allegations against Shah regarding his health are baseless. He has immense potential to run the affairs of the provincial government. He knows how to deal with federal and provincial issues,” he said, adding that the party will announce the CM candidate within three to four days. He also claimed that this decision would be made by consensus and not by a single person, as some perceive.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2013.

The outcome of the May 11 elections revealed that PML-N emerged as the third largest party in the province after Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). Even though the party has only won four provincial seats – three in Karachi and one in Jacobabad – it has merged with the Shirazi group in Thatta and the National Peoples Party (NPP), led by the Jatoi brothers of Naushero Feroz, to sit on the opposition benches.

If the MQM joins the government as expected, the Pakistan Muslim League – Functional (PML-F) would have managed to appoint an opposition leader with its seven seats. However, its loyalists, such as the NPP, have joined hands with the PML-N instead. Not only this, the Shirazi brothers of Thatta – who fought against the PPP as independent candidates and bagged four provincial assembly seats – also followed the Jatoi brothers to join the PML-N, making it the third largest party in Sindh.

In the week following the polls, one of the Shirazi group MPAs, Muhammad Ali Malkani, announced that he will join the PPP while an independent MPA from Jamshoro, Syed Abdul Nabi Shah, also joined the PPP. With these developments, the number of PPP candidates jumped to 67 and the Shirazi group’s strength went down to three but the PML-N is still confident.

“We now have 11 members in the Sindh Assembly,” boasted PML-N leader Ghous Ali Shah, adding that Arbab Ghulam has also decided to join the party and another independent candidate is also considering joining. After this, the PML-N will have 12 members in the Sindh Assembly. “It is our right to appoint an opposition leader if the MQM is joining the coalition government.”

A PML-N official also hinted that Arbab Ghulam may be a potential candidate for the opposition leader, given that he joins hands with the PML-N. One of Arbab Ghulam’s close aides told The Express Tribune that the PML-N leadership had also approached Arbab Ghulam to join the party and they will soon hold a meeting. “The PML-N leadership is asking us to merge our party, the Peoples Muslim League, with theirs,” said the party’s Razzaque Rahimoon. “We have convened a meeting of some senior leaders and will decide in a couple of days.”

Meanwhile, Sindh is awaiting the results of a few provincial seats. Out of a total 130 general seats, polling was terminated on two provincial assembly seats – PS-64 Mirpurkhas and PS-95 Orangi – due to the deaths of two candidates. Meanwhile, the election commission has yet to announce the results on three provincial assembly seats – PS-17 Kashmore, PS-62 and PS-63 Tharparkar, where it has ordered fresh polling at a few polling stations.

Everyone wants Unar

The PPP and the PML-N have once again approached a Larkana landlord, Haji Altaf Unar, who defeated PPP candidate Sohail Anwar Sial. Unar, who was earlier considered a rival of the PPP in Larkana, was affiliated with the PML-Q but he joined the PPP a few months before the elections. However, he developed some differences with the PPP leadership right before the elections, forcing the PPP leadership to announce that it had nothing to do with him. The party even fielded a candidate against him but Unar won.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 22^nd, 2013.

KARACHI: After much debate, allegations and counter-allegations between political parties, a partial re-run of the vote in 43 polling stations of NA-250 (Karachi-XII) concluded peacefully and efficiently on Sunday, amid tight security provided by police, Rangers and army personnel.

As unofficial results from the re-polls poured in late Sunday night, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) appeared far ahead of the pack.

Dr Arif Alvi, PTI’s candidate for the National Assembly seat, led with 17,541 votes – a staggering lead considering his sole rival for the constituency, Jamaat-e-Islami’s Naimatullah Khan, could muster around 446 votes, despite Jamaat-e-Islami’s boycott.

Unofficial results for NA-250’s corresponding provincial assembly constituencies – PS-112 and PS-113 – were similarly encouraging for PTI. Its candidate for PS-112, Khurram Sher Zaman, secured 2,521 votes from seven polling stations, against his opponent Khalid Iqbal of Awami National Party who could only secure 177 votes.

PTI candidate for PS-113 Samar Ali Khan, meanwhile, polled 9,501 votes, according to the results of 28 polling stations. His rival candidate, Saleem Zia of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz bagged around 3,291 votes.

Till the filing of this report, election staff was still busy counting the votes from 43 stations.

Talking to The Express Tribune, a senior Election Commission official said that Dr Alvi had unofficially been elected to the National Assembly seat. According to the official, Alvi secured around 51,000 votes on May 11, against Muttahida Qaumi Movement candidate Khushbakht Shujaat, who received around 47,000 votes, and Pakistan Peoples Party candidate Rashid Rabbani, who received around 17,000 votes.

With their respective parties’ decision to boycott the partial re-run of polls, their chances of defeating Alvi have been virtually erased.

“After adding the results from the re-polls, Alvi’s vote count may rise up to 68,500,” the official maintained, adding that the final results would be announced by May 22.

More than 80,000 voters had been registered in the 43 polling stations where the re-polls were scheduled to take place. While the process ended without any untoward incident – as opposed to May 11, which witnessed mismanagement and staggering delays, amid allegations of rigging – the turnout on Sunday was much lower than Election Day. In several stations, the turnout was as low as 30-40%, compared to 55-60% on May 11.

The low turnout can be gauged from the example of Aram Bagh polling station, where only 49 votes were cast against 1,400 registered voters. Similarly, while 1,100 voters were registered at the polling station near the Railway Station, only 500 people turned up to cast votes on Sunday.

A higher turnout was witnessed in the DHA and Clifton areas, despite fears stoked by the killing of senior PTI leader Zahra Shahid Hussain the night before.

“We are really happy to see the arrangements made by the ECP. If such measures had been taken on May 11, the situation would have been much better,” said Abdul Haq, a senior citizen who came to vote at the Aisha Bawany School.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 20^th, 2013.

According to police, three assailants intercepted 65-year-old Hussain as she stepped out off her car outside her house in Karachi’s DHA Phase-IV area.

“The suspects attempted to snatch her purse… they shot her after she put up resistance,” said SP Clifton Division Nasir Aftab, quoting the slain PTI leader’s driver. The suspects fled the scene following the incident, he added.

Hussain’s family immediately rushed her to a nearby private hospital.

“She received a single bullet to her chin which pierced her neck. She succumbed to her injuries during treatment,” a doctor at the health facility told The Express Tribune on condition of anonymity. Hussain’s body was later moved to the Jinnah Postgraduate Medical Centre for legal formalities.

Party leaders confirmed Hussain’s death.

Targeted killing or mugging?

By the time this report was filed, police were still unclear about the motive behind Hussain’s murder. “Nothing could be said about the nature of the incident … whether it’s an act of targeted killing or a robbery bid gone awry… till the investigation is complete,” said SP Aftab.

Condemnation

In a statement condemning the incident, PTI chairman Imran Khan held Muttahida Qaumi Movement chief Altaf Hussain and the British government directly responsible for murder of Zahra Shahid Hussain.

“He [Altaf] openly threatened PTI workers and leaders through public broadcasts… Unfortunately, the British Government did nothing to stop his calls to violence,” Khan maintained.

“I am totally shocked and deeply saddened and still cannot believe anyone would kill such a gentle lady,” he added.

PML-N leader Shahbaz Sharif was also quick to condemn the incident.

“Strongly condemn the target killing of Mrs Zahra Hussain! Culprits should be apprehended and punished ASAP – this cannot be allowed to go on,” he said on Twitter.

Talking to The Express Tribune, the PTI Media Coordinator Nasir Jamal lashed out at government authorities for failing to provide adequate protection to his party’s leaders and workers in Karachi.

Meanwhile, PML-N leader Salim Zia, who visited the hospital, demanded an independent investigation into the incident by a judge.

Re-polling in NA-250 today

Re-polling in 43 polling stations of NA-250 (Karachi-XII) will take place today (Sunday), amid tight security provided by police, Rangers and army personnel. However, very few political parties will be contesting these re-polls, as the JI declared a boycott on May 11th, while the MQM announced on Friday that they would boycott the re-polls. On Saturday night, the PPP also joined the boycott bandwagon, leaving the field clear for the PTI.

Talking to The Express Tribune on Saturday, Sindh Election Commissioner SM Tariq Qadri said that strict security measures have been taken to avert any attempts at rigging or any other untoward incident.

“I assure voters and candidates that there will be no mismanagement on our part, and free and fair elections will be held in the constituency,” he maintained, adding, “the polls will start at 8am and continue till 5pm without any break.”

Qadri said following concerns by leaders of political parties regarding the credentials of election staff, the Election Commission has appointed new presiding officers, assistant presiding officers and polling officers for the re-polls.

“Apart from the district returning officer and returning officers, the entire election staff has been changed,” he said, adding that the colours of the ballots had been switched this time around as well.

“For Sunday’s polls, white ballot paper will be used for the National Assembly seat and green ballot paper will be used for provincial assembly seats… For the May 11 elections, green ballots were used for National and white for provincial assembly seats.”

Qadri maintained the ballot boxes for the re-polls had already been prepared and transported to respective polling stations under the supervision of the armed forces. According to both Army and ECP sources, soldiers will be deployed inside the polling stations.

Re-polls in Tharparkar

ECP has also announced re-polls in 47 polling stations of two National Assembly constituencies in Tharparkar.

According to the official ECP notification on Sunday, the re-polls will be carried out in four polling stations of NA-229 (Tharparkar –I) and 43 polling stations of NA-230 (Tharparkar –II) and its corresponding Sindh Assembly constituencies – PS-62 ((Tharparkar –III) and PS-63 (Tharparkar –IV). The re-polls have been scheduled for June 1.

The commission had earlier decided to withhold the results of NA-229, NA-230, PS-62 and PS-63 following violence and allegations of widespread rigging in the constituencies. The ballot papers of more than 40 polling stations were set ablaze and a worker of a political party was killed during the violence on Election Day.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 19^th, 2013.

KARACHI: After Muttahida Qaumi Movement and Jamaat-e-Islami, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) also boycotted the re-election on 43 polling stations of NA-250 in Karachi. 

The party, which had on Saturday evening urged its leaders, party workers and supporters to participate in the election, overturned its earlier decision.

“The election commission has not heard our grievances and we have been pushed to the wall. We are not satisfied with arrangements made by election commission,” Rashid Rabbani, the PPP candidate for NA-250, told The Express Tribune.

Rabbani said that he, along with senior party leaders, would further brief the public on reasons behind their boycott in a press conference to be held later on Saturday night.

Re-elections in 43 polling stations of NA-250 are set to take place on Sunday, amid tight security provided by police, Rangers and the army.

PPP’s Rabbani was contesting against Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Arif Alvi for the national assembly seat. PPP’s Karamullah was running for PS-112 against PTI’s Khuram Sher Zaman , and the party had fielded Asad Hussain Zuberi on PS-113 against Samar Ali Khan of PTI.

Ironically, just a few hours before their volte face, the PPP General Secretary in Sindh Taj Haider in a statement to the press said that PPP had made historic sacrifices in the fight for democracy in Pakistan. The party has fought against the heaviest odds and excesses, but has never moved away from the electoral process, he added.

Haider urged all PPP office bearers, workers and supporters to fully participate in the polls at the 43 stations of NA-250, PS-112 and PS-113.

The PPP leader had stressed that boycotts of the electoral process are counterproductive and do not help the democratic cause. It is only through participation in elections that the excesses and crimes committed by anti-democratic elements can be brought out, he said.

More important than the fresh polls in NA-250 was carrying out investigations as to why polling could not be held at many stations on May 11, Haider urged.

Responsibility has to be fixed and the criminals punished according to the law, he added.

The PPP boyc0tt comes a day after the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and the Jamaat-i-Islami boycotted the elections in the constituency. On Saturday, the Majlis-e-Wahdatul Muslimeen also boycotted re-elections in the constituency.

Among the prominent parties now contesting the elections in the constituency include the PTI on the national provincial assembly seats and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz on a provincial assembly seat.

Re-elections will also be held for the corresponding provincial assembly constituencies PS-112 and PS-113.

The ECP directed that the ballot papers for the National Assembly constituency will be white in colour and those for the two provincial assembly constituencies will be light green in order to avoid confusion with the previous ballots.

The ECP had issued notices to the PTI, MQM, Sindh chief secretary and provincial inspector-general of police over petitions to conduct re-elections in the entire constituency.

Taking up the petitions, the poll body rejected MQM counsel Farough Naseem’s plea that since voter turnout at the rest of the polling stations of the constituency remained very low, re-elections should be held in the entire constituency.

“In our opinion, low turnout is no justification to order re-polling. Thus, we see no reason to interfere with our earlier order,” the ECP said.

The order added that the army should be deployed inside and outside all polling stations on May 19 – the day of the re-polls.

The ECP directed the provincial election commissioner to finalise arrangements for re-polls and sent a copy of its order to the military operations directorate of the army headquarters to ensure adequate security in the area on May 19.

“Army personnel may be deployed inside as well as outside the 43 polling stations of that constituency. Army may also provide support to the provincial administration, Rangers and police for maintenance of law and order in Karachi generally on the day of polls under Article 245 of the Constitution” the said.

The Inter Services Public Relations spokesperson in Karachi also said that Chief of Army Staff General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani assured Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Fakhruddin G Ebrahim of full support and security for the areas where the re-elections are being held.

“It is yet to be decided whether the personnel will be patrolling inside the polling stations or outside. We are in the process of finalising this mechanism,” he said.

Following the order, Sindh Election Commissioner S M Tariq Qadri has said all polling staff, including presiding officers, their assistants and polling officers have been reshuffled to ensure free and fair re-elections.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, Qadri said the district returning officer and returning officer will not be changed.

“The ballot papers will be distributed under the supervision of the army and we have requested the armed forces, police and Rangers to ensure strict security measures,” he said, adding that it was the prerogative of the provincial home department and police to make a decision regarding the deployment of security forces.

He said one presiding officer will be in charge of a polling station whereas two assistant presiding officers and one polling officer will be deputed at each station. “Around 165 polling staff will be engaged in the re-election process,” he added.

MQM to boycott re-elections

After hours of consultations, MQM has announced it will boycott re-elections at 43 polling stations of the NA-250 constituency.

MQM leader Raza Haroon said at a press conference on Friday that the party will not participate in polls. The decision was taken after a meeting of the MQM Coordination Committee in both London and Karachi.

“The decision of the election commission to hold re-polling at only 43 stations out of 180 is unfair and partial. We will not be part of this injustice,” Haroon declared.

He termed the selective re-polling a conspiracy to snatch its mandate.

“Delimitation in the city was the first conspiracy against us. And now polling on only selected polling stations is another conspiracy.”

“Is Punjab Colony, Doli Ghaat and Qayyumabad not a part of NA-250,” he asked.

Haroon said at many polling stations in these areas, voting was not held while in others, voters were not given enough time to cast their votes.

He added that thousands of MQM voters were frustrated at not being able to cast their votes, and would now be deprived again.

Talking about PTI candidate for NA-250, Dr Arif Alvi, Haroon questioned why the ECP did not take notice of his possessing ballot papers. “A candidate possessing elections material would have been disqualified, but this incident went unnoticed by the ECP. I want to ask why?”

Published in The Express Tribune, May 18^th, 2013.

According to sources familiar with the development, powerful lobbies within the party have started using their influence to replace Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ebad with a person of their choosing. The strongest names being touted for the slot are Ghous Ali Shah, Mumtaz Ali Bhutto, Imdad Chandio and Justice (retd) Nasir Aslam Zahid, they added.

“Party leaders are divided on the appointment of the (Sindh] governor. Some suggest this slot be given to a person who can give PPP a tough time in Sindh and organise the party in the province, but a few leaders recommend appointing a non-Sindhi governor who can accommodate all stakeholders amicably,” a senior PML-N leader told The Express Tribune.

“The final decision will be made next week in Lahore,” he said, adding the PML-N would consult all likeminded parties in Sindh, such as PML-Functional, before making a decision.

There are also reports that PML-F is demanding the governorship in Sindh. No senior PML-F leader confirmed the reports.

“Our support is unconditional. We have not demanded anything from PML-N,” said PML-F Sindh chapter secretary general Imtiaz Shaikh.

Meanwhile, PML-N senior leader Siddiqul Farooq said that it would be a prerogative of the new federal government to appoint ‘governors of good repute’. “We will at least appoint those people who do not have a criminal record,” he said.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 16^th, 2013.