MQM secures PML-N’s backing for strong LG system

Ahsan says party will support ally’s proposed constitutional tweaks in parliament

ISLAMABAD:

PML-N leader and former federal minister Ahsan Iqbal on Wednesday said his party endorsed a strong and effective local government system after his meeting with an MQM-P delegation – its ally in Sindh – at his Islamabad residence.

Speaking to the media after the huddle, Iqbal told the media that the MQM-P delegation had presented the draft of constitutional amendments to his party and the two sides discussed it.

“There is no platform more effective than local governments to solve people's problems. We assured them [MQM-P] that we will extend our complete support to have the constitutional amendments approved by the next parliament,” he added.

The PML-N leader reiterated his party’s unwavering support for the MQM-P. The two parties also decided to move ahead with their allies in Sindh to bag more seats. “We didn’t talk about sharing any kind of positions or ministries, but only focused on the people and their problems,” the PML-N leader maintained.

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Iqbal claimed that PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif was convicted in fabricated cases. He hoped that Nawaz would be exonerated in the Al-Azizia case too after his acquittal in the Avenfield reference. Speaking on the occasion, MQM-P leader Farooq Sattar, who was part of the delegation, explained that his party and the PML-N had joined hands in an attempt to develop a national consensus.

He added that his party had done its homework and came to the conclusion that only a strong local government system could ensure the progress of the country. MQM-P leader Mustafa Kamal said the PPP, a former coalition partner of both the parties, did not have the excellence that any other party could not form its government in Sindh.

The PPP has been in power in Sindh for nearly 1.5 decades and the province is considered its stronghold. “We [MQM-P] are the second largest party in Sindh. Even the PML-N has had a chief minister in the province too,” he pointed out. He continued that the parties in the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) had also remained in power in Sindh as well.

Kamal’s remarks made it further clear that the alliance between the PML-N and MQM-P is aimed at dethroning the PPP in Sindh.