Election alliances: Nawaz looks to woo Baloch nationalists

Party members say the PML-N chief is willing to engage everyone.

ISLAMABAD:

As the present government’s term draws to an end, the opposition has begun the tedious process of knitting together an electoral alliance ahead of the general elections.

A leading figure in the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has told The Express Tribune that the PML-N chief. Nawaz Sharif will soon visit Balochistan in a continuation of his all-out efforts to stitch together a grand opposition alliance against the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

Sources reveal that following the positive response in interior Sindh, the party is now seeking to build cross-cutting alliances with Baloch and Pashtun nationalist parties in Balochistan. The latest foray into Balochistan comes as PML-N attempts to bring the majority of political factions in Balochistan on one electoral platform.

PML-N information secretary Senator Mushahidullah Khan has confirmed that Nawaz Sharif will be visiting Balochistan soon after Ramazan.

Party members have revealed that the PML-N president is willing to engage everyone in the province. “Mian Sahib has asked provincial party members to talk to everyone including Baloch nationalists, Pakhtun parties and religious outfits,” said an insider who will be travelling to Saudi Arabia with the Sharif family.

However, Nawaz is most likely to meet the Jamhoori Watan Party (JWP) of slain Baloch leader Akbar Bugti, Awami and Mengal factions of the Balochistan National Party (BNP).

Published in The Express Tribune, August 9^th, 2012.