ISLAMABAD: As the beleaguered Pakistan Peoples Party struggles to deal with multiple challenges, especially in Karachi, the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid has decided to quit the Sindh government, which it had joined a few months ago.
“Our ministers and advisers have decided to resign from ministries. We will pull out from the Sindh government and sit on the Opposition benches,” said PML-Q Sindh’s secretary-general Haleem Adil Sheikh, who was made adviser to the chief minister after his party joined the government, told The Express Tribune by phone.
When asked the reasons for this drastic step, he said that PPP Sindh’s senior leaders never considered PML-Q as an ally and ignored them since they joined the government. “The chief minister does not meet us. He does not even take our calls. We were given ministries and adviseries but no administrative powers,” he said.
Though the PPP has a simple majority in Sindh and does not need the support of any party to continue its government in the province, such a dissent at this time can serve as catalyst to destabilise its government in the centre where it cannot govern without the support of its allies. However, when the PML-Q joined the government, it was given two ministries and two adviser positions.
Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), the second-largest party in Sindh, has already quit the provincial and federal government while its alliance with Awami National Party (ANP) is also fragile.
PML-Q, which claims to be the third-largest party in the centre, has only half a dozen members in Sindh but around 52 members in the National Assembly.
Party’s cabinet members have submitted resignations to Sheikh and will be meeting PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain today (Wednesday) in Islamabad.
“We will be meeting the party president today and request him to endorse our decision and formally pull out of the Sindh government,” he said.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 7th, 2011.
COMMENTS (6)
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Possibly it means MQM is near to join.
Perfect! Now #PPP will fall in its own trap :)
Tissue paper party
I can only HA HA HA HA poor political people..
Please do it as soon as possible to end blackmailing politics.
Quit from Centre too and not become second MQM