Reorganisation plan: PPP plans to bring back angry workers, leaders

Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah says MQM would be welcome in Sindh government.

KARACHI:

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has announced a major reorganisation of the party’s rank and file from the grassroots level to the top leadership, with the aim of regaining the confidence of estranged, sidelined and angry party leaders and workers.

“We are now trying to approach even those companions of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and his daughter Benazir Bhutto who are no longer active in politics,” said senior PPP leader Raza Rabbani.

Different trade unions earlier affiliated with the Peoples Party will also be invited to renew their relations, Rabbani said while addressing a joint press conference at CM House along with Sindh Chief Minister Qaim Ali Shah and Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon.

Rabbani who has recently been appointed as central additional secretary general of his party said PPP would support every positive step of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) government, but would not “tolerate” it if any worker was fired and state owned industries were privatised. “We have already suffered a lot after the privatisation of Karachi Electric Supply Company (KESC), which is flouting all the rules regulation and orders by the government,” he said.



‘MQM welcome to join Sindh govt’

Responding to media questions, Qaim Ali Shah said the PPP government would still welcome the MQM if it joins the Sindh government.

Responding to a question, Shah said that he had not visited Lyari to meet criminals, but that the elected representatives of the areas had held a reception in the honour of newly appointed cabinet members. “Lyari is a stronghold of PPP. It is our second home and no one can stop us from visiting the area,” he said.



LG elections

He said that the incumbent government would hold the local government elections under the 1979 Act.

Shah said that in the wake of the 18th Amendment, most of the departments have been devolved, but certain elements in the federal government and bureaucracy were not willing to devolve the education department.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 9^th, 2013.