Deepening crisis: Sidelined Sindh leaders fault PML-N bigwigs
Wielding no powers, PML-N’s Sindh members resign for being made ‘dummy’ ministers.
Supporters of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) march in a rally along with a statue of a lion for the upcoming general election in Islamabad on May 4, 2013. PHOTO: AFP
KARACHI:
As key leaders of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) in Sindh have quit, the party is losing whatever political clout it had in the province.
The disgruntled party leaders allege that the central leadership, especially Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, have sidelined them. Earlier, the internal divergence in the party had emerged with the resignation of more than 200 office-bearers at the district and taluka levels soon after their provincial chief Ghous Ali Shah quit the party in August last year.
Mumtaz Bhutto and his comrades who had merged their party (Sindh National Front) with the PML-N also followed the trail, handing in their resignations from senior positions a few days ago.
But the party crisis deepens with each passing day, a situation which came to light on Thursday when former chief minister of Sindh and senior PML-N leader Liaquat Jatoi told The Express Tribune that the party had ‘depressed’ them.
“Not only this, but a sense prevails within the ranks and files of the party in Sindh that the PML-N leadership has betrayed us,” he said, confirming news of the party’s declining pull in the province. According to Jatoi, the PML-N’s leadership is not willing to pay attention to the mounting concerns of its Sindh comrades.
“Many leaders are facing severe threats. We have conveyed our grievances in writing to the prime minister, but in vain,” he said, adding that the Sherazi brothers of Thatta; the Soomro family of Jacobabad and Shikarpur; the Arbabs in Tharparkar and the Jatois of Naushahro Feroze are now feeling uneasy with the PML-N and federal government’s response.
Sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune that the resignation tendered by the Mumtaz Bhutto group has created more frustration in the party, and has given a chance to the PPP leadership to approach them individually. Sources said Khursheed Shah has been tasked to bring Liaquat Jatoi into the PPP fold.
“A serious deliberation has started. Liaquat Jatoi, a stiff rival of the PPP, has sought more time. He has indicated that he may bring more influential party leaders with him,” a senior PPP leader familiar with the development said.
Before the May election, Nawaz was active in Sindh politics and showed interest in bringing drastic changes. Due to his frequent visits, not only did Mumtaz Bhutto and the Jatoi brothers merge their parties, but the Sherazi brothers of Thatta also jumped ship. With this response, the PML-N appointed around 44 vice presidents and joint secretaries in the party to accommodate various groups. Interestingly, majority of these people have either resigned from their positions or openly started to disown the party.
After the election, Mumtaz Bhutto’s son Ameer Bux Bhutto was made adviser to the prime minister on port and shipping; Murtaza Jatoi, federal minister for industries and production; and Hakeem Baloch, state minister for railways. But with no powers, they all complain that they are working as dummy ministers.
“I had been given the status of federal minister, but without power. Till my resignation, I had no idea what my role was,” Bhutto said. He added that despite serious grievances expressed by a senior leader from Sindh, Nawaz had “no time to listen”.
For their part, some senior leaders of PML-N do not agree with Bhutto’s remarks. Shah Muhammad Shah and Saleem Zia were of the opinion that Nawaz has delivered more than expected. “Not only was Mumtaz Bhutto’s son made adviser, but Bhutto appointed his people in various government and semi-government organisations as their board of directors,” Shah said, adding that the party under the leadership of Ghous Ali and Mumtaz Bhutto failed to deliver in the May elections as not a single seat was won from rural Sindh. “The party has not yet accepted their resignations. Even Ghous Ali Shah is still our provincial chief,” he said.
Zia, general secretary of the PML-N Sindh chapter, said there was no communication gap between them and the central leadership. “The prime minister has assured us that grievances expressed by the local leadership of our party would be overcome,” he said.
However, Liaquat Jatoi while speaking to The Express Tribune confirmed his negotiation with PPP leaders and said, “My father was a PPP worker. I had contested the first-ever election in 1977 on the platform of PPP. Everything is possible in politics, but a decision is yet to be made,” he said.
Correction: A previous version of the story erroneously reported '1977' as '19777'. The error has been fixed.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 26th, 2014.
As key leaders of the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) in Sindh have quit, the party is losing whatever political clout it had in the province.
The disgruntled party leaders allege that the central leadership, especially Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, have sidelined them. Earlier, the internal divergence in the party had emerged with the resignation of more than 200 office-bearers at the district and taluka levels soon after their provincial chief Ghous Ali Shah quit the party in August last year.
Mumtaz Bhutto and his comrades who had merged their party (Sindh National Front) with the PML-N also followed the trail, handing in their resignations from senior positions a few days ago.
But the party crisis deepens with each passing day, a situation which came to light on Thursday when former chief minister of Sindh and senior PML-N leader Liaquat Jatoi told The Express Tribune that the party had ‘depressed’ them.
“Not only this, but a sense prevails within the ranks and files of the party in Sindh that the PML-N leadership has betrayed us,” he said, confirming news of the party’s declining pull in the province. According to Jatoi, the PML-N’s leadership is not willing to pay attention to the mounting concerns of its Sindh comrades.
“Many leaders are facing severe threats. We have conveyed our grievances in writing to the prime minister, but in vain,” he said, adding that the Sherazi brothers of Thatta; the Soomro family of Jacobabad and Shikarpur; the Arbabs in Tharparkar and the Jatois of Naushahro Feroze are now feeling uneasy with the PML-N and federal government’s response.
Sources privy to the development told The Express Tribune that the resignation tendered by the Mumtaz Bhutto group has created more frustration in the party, and has given a chance to the PPP leadership to approach them individually. Sources said Khursheed Shah has been tasked to bring Liaquat Jatoi into the PPP fold.
“A serious deliberation has started. Liaquat Jatoi, a stiff rival of the PPP, has sought more time. He has indicated that he may bring more influential party leaders with him,” a senior PPP leader familiar with the development said.
Before the May election, Nawaz was active in Sindh politics and showed interest in bringing drastic changes. Due to his frequent visits, not only did Mumtaz Bhutto and the Jatoi brothers merge their parties, but the Sherazi brothers of Thatta also jumped ship. With this response, the PML-N appointed around 44 vice presidents and joint secretaries in the party to accommodate various groups. Interestingly, majority of these people have either resigned from their positions or openly started to disown the party.
After the election, Mumtaz Bhutto’s son Ameer Bux Bhutto was made adviser to the prime minister on port and shipping; Murtaza Jatoi, federal minister for industries and production; and Hakeem Baloch, state minister for railways. But with no powers, they all complain that they are working as dummy ministers.
“I had been given the status of federal minister, but without power. Till my resignation, I had no idea what my role was,” Bhutto said. He added that despite serious grievances expressed by a senior leader from Sindh, Nawaz had “no time to listen”.
For their part, some senior leaders of PML-N do not agree with Bhutto’s remarks. Shah Muhammad Shah and Saleem Zia were of the opinion that Nawaz has delivered more than expected. “Not only was Mumtaz Bhutto’s son made adviser, but Bhutto appointed his people in various government and semi-government organisations as their board of directors,” Shah said, adding that the party under the leadership of Ghous Ali and Mumtaz Bhutto failed to deliver in the May elections as not a single seat was won from rural Sindh. “The party has not yet accepted their resignations. Even Ghous Ali Shah is still our provincial chief,” he said.
Zia, general secretary of the PML-N Sindh chapter, said there was no communication gap between them and the central leadership. “The prime minister has assured us that grievances expressed by the local leadership of our party would be overcome,” he said.
However, Liaquat Jatoi while speaking to The Express Tribune confirmed his negotiation with PPP leaders and said, “My father was a PPP worker. I had contested the first-ever election in 1977 on the platform of PPP. Everything is possible in politics, but a decision is yet to be made,” he said.
Correction: A previous version of the story erroneously reported '1977' as '19777'. The error has been fixed.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 26th, 2014.