MQM Pakistan to support PTI: Sources
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KARACHI - The Muttahida Qaumi Movement- Pakistan (MQM-P) despite losing Karachi after its reign of three decades to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has not lost the charm for majority party – the Imran Khan’s PTI and opposition clique, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz.
After Governor Sindh, who has already on Sunday tendered his resignation following to what he called rigged election but not yet accepted by the President, completed visit of the Bahadurabad, headquarters of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) with the message from Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz’s president Shehbaz Sharif, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s delegation led by Jehangir Tareen arrived in MQM’s office later on Monday night.
The MQM-P leader between the two meetings sit and deliberated as what could be the best possible outcome for a party, which has lost majority but still enjoys the city government, which the lowest but an important tier of the government.
“We have heard to both the PTI and PMLN and will deliberate tomorrow (Tuesday) as what is better for the city and its people,” Faisal Subzwari, the MQM-P’s central leader and former minister told *The Frontier Post*.
The MQM-P leader, however, did not rule out the option of supporting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insafs’ federal government in lieu of good packages for Karachi.
“The issues of Karachi have increased manifold and it needs special packages to develop the city in order to resolve the issues of transport, sanitation, drinking waters and garbage among several other issues,” Subzwari told this scribe, adding any decision, however, will be taken tomorrow after thorough deliberations and “any decision will be taken in view the benefit of people”.
The MQM-P had been pleading for more powerful local government, however after the devolution of powers from center to the province, the powers of local government can be increased or contained by the Sindh Government but the center can help the city through special packages.
Meanwhile, Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz leader and former Sindh governor Mohammad Zubair met with the MQM-Pakistan at its Bahadurabad office on Monday.
Speaking to the media after the meeting, Zubair remarked that the two parties will continue to stay in the touch in the coming few weeks, adding that MQM-Pakistan also has reservations regarding the way elections were conducted.
Regarding the meeting, he shared that the representatives of the two parties discussed the conditions in Sindh especially Karachi alongside the political situation which has emerged following the General Election 2018.
Moreover, MQM-Pakistan leader Faisal Sabzwari alleged that the Election Commission of Pakistan was involved in the rigging the elections for the first time. “The failure of the result transmission system shows that ECP was unsuccessful in its task.”
The returning officers must recount votes as per the law, he claimed.
“People whose own party wouldn’t vote for them won. How is this possible,” Sabzwari asked.
With regards to Form 45, he questioned where was it filled? “Who knows where it was filled as the polling agents weren’t present at the time votes were being counted.”
Form 45 was supposed to be submitted on the day of the election rather than being uploaded on the website after a week, he said.
When asked about the Karachi operation, Zubair clarified that it was held to bring peace to the city. “Karachi operation was not against MQM,” he said.