Photo courtesy PMLN
The Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) on Friday continued efforts to make inroads in Sindh, with party president Shehbaz Sharif visiting Karachi and meeting leaders of the Grand Democratic Alliance (GDA) and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), while calling for collective efforts to resolve the issues facing the provincial capital.
Addressing a press conference alongside MQMP leaders, Sharif praised the party, saying they had proven dedicated to public welfare during their partnership in Pakistan Democratic Movement-led government. Stressing the upcoming general elections would determine Pakistan’s future, he warned some elements sought to sow division in the country.
“There is only one solution to this … these elections have to prove whether the political leadership can resolve this situation with mutual consultation,” he said, while rubbishing the impression that his elder brother, Nawaz Sharif, was the new “favorite” of the establishment. Questioning whether such a person would be ousted from power by the Supreme Court and see his daughter placed under arrest in front of him, he added: “A ladla is the person who is greeted in courts with ‘good to see you’,” referring to Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) leader Imran Khan.
Maintaining he had endeavored to resolve Karachi’s issue during his time in the Prime Minister’s Office, Sharif said teamwork was necessary to enact the changes needed. “I don’t want to accuse anyone, but this city wasn’t given the rights it deserves,” he said, describing as a “shame” that the city that generated trillions for the national economy did not have access to drinking water. “The roads and infrastructures are ruined. The buses plying here don’t even meet the standards of those operating in rural areas,” he said, vowing to reverse the situation with the PMLN’s political allies if they were voted into power.
The MQMP’s Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui echoed these views, maintaining his party enjoyed harmony with the PMLN. He said their partnership would lead to a better future for Sindh.
Later, in a meeting with GDA chief Syed Sibghatullah Shah Rashdi, the PMLN leader formalized an alliance ahead of polls, with details to be hashed out by committees.
Separately, in a press conference, he vowed to put an end to the water tanker mafia in Karachi, develop public infrastructure and empower the youth with technical skills to accelerate Pakistan’s development if the PMLN were elected into power.
Maintaining the PMLN had “put an end” to unrest such as target killings and extortion in 1998, he claimed Nawaz Sharif had always prioritized Karachi while in power. “Had he not been deprived of the premiership, the Hyderabad-Karachi motorway would have been completed by now, alongside various other projects in rural Sindh,” he claimed, adding the PMLN would organize “strong” election campaigns in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa for the Feb. 8 polls.
Last week, Sharif filed nomination papers from NA-242, a Karachi seat to the National Assembly.