PML-N leader jumps ship to PPP

Imdad Chandio was central vice-president of PML-N

KARACHI: Just when Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was all set to arrive in Jacobabad for his rally, a senior Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N) leader and central vice president of the party, Imdad Chandio, joined the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Friday.

Chandio jumped ship to PPP after his meeting with MNA Faryal Talpur at Bilawal House.

Chandio, who belongs to Larkana division, has served as food and finance minister in the provincial cabinet in the 1990s. When the entire PML-N leadership was forced to be in self-exile after the 1999 military coup, Chandio led the party and turned down Musharraf’s offer to join his setup.



Addressing a joint press conference with PPP Sindh President Nisar Khuhro at the PPP Media Cell, he alleged that the prime minister and his government have completely neglected Sindh’s issues, which is why he, along with dozens of his supporters, has left the PML-N.

"My affiliation with PML-N is 25 years old but our leadership could not understand the problems faced by our people," he said, adding that PPP has been working in Sindh as an organisation with its roots among the people, which is why he joined it.

Earlier, former chief ministers, Liaquat Jatoi and Mumtaz Bhutto, have also left the PML-N. Apart from this, Ismail Rahu, the party's Sindh chapter president, also tendered his resignation last month. There are reports that Rahu, an influential leader of Badin district, will also join the PPP in the coming days.

Speaking on the occasion, Khuhro said that PML-N has disappointed party leaders, which is why they are leaving it. “No one else but PML-N leaders have exposed the actual face of the federal government,” Khuhro said.