PSP postpones membership campaign

MQM-Pakistan to hold public meeting as planned

HYDERABAD: After postponing their public meeting scheduled for December 8 to coincide with the same event of Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) - Pakistan, the Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) also deferred on Thursday its membership campaign. "We have postponed the December 8 membership campaign so that MQM-Pakistan can't show crowds of our workers as their supporters gathering for the public meeting," PSP Chairperson Syed Mustafa Kamal said at a press conference in Hyderabad.

Kamal labelled MQM-Pakistan's electoral mandate a pretense. "This is the reason he [MQM-Pakistan Convener Dr Farooq Sattar] is so eager to arrange public meetings and rallies to make the people believe that the mandate belongs to the party he now leads."

He said that Sindh was unfairly treated in the national population census and denounced Dr Sattar's reaction, which he claimed was fake. "He [Sattar] thought that he fulfilled his obligation [with regard to opposing the census] by holding a public meeting."



Kamal blamed MQM-Pakistan for trading the blood of the party's workers for political gains. "Considering the martyrs hot cakes, they are doing politics on the basis of bodies."

He alleged that Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (HMC) Mayor Syed Tayyab Hussain, who belongs to MQM-Pakistan, has embezzled Rs400 million. He also accused the Pakistan Peoples Party-led government of being silent over the alleged corruption.

"Instead of providing a clean environment to the people of Hyderabad, local government funds are being used to organise public meetings." He mentioned that so far nine MQM-Pakistan legislators have joined the PSP and many others are willing to follow suit.



Last month, both the parties announced holding public meetings in Hyderabad on December 8. However, the district administration rejected their applications because they asked for the same place, Bagh-e-Mustafa Park in Latifabad.

MQM-Pakistan reapplied by changing the venue to Akbari Ground in Latifabad and obtained permission. PSP, on the other hand, had changed their agenda from a public meeting to a membership campaign.

Earlier, Kamal and PSP President Anis Qaimkhani, accompanied by other party leaders, also inaugurated PSP’s election cell in Hyderabad.