Tag: national dialogue

  • ‘Members of TTP are in contact with me’, Barrister Saif wants dialogue with banned group

    ‘Members of TTP are in contact with me’, Barrister Saif wants dialogue with banned group

    Barrister Muhammad Ali Saif, Advisor to the Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhwa on Information, has once again reiterated the need to start a dialogue with Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as the country reels from a surge in terror attacks.

    Saif stated that the recent significant loss of lives on “both sides” should prompt Pakistan to opt for a peaceful way to get out of this mess.

    “We must consider the possibility of dialogue if terrorists are willing to renounce terrorism. The situation must be approached realistically. Lives are being lost on both sides, and the only way to halt this is to pursue peaceful means. This does not imply any form of surrender to the terrorists.”

    The statement comes a few days after CM KP Ali Amin Gandapur also said that the country needs to open a dialogue with terrorists because “Whatever we have done has gained us nothing.”

    The Advisor also revealed that the terrorists are in contact with him, “Members of the TTP have been in contact with me, discussing their issues. At times, when the TTP has issues with the Pakistan army, they communicate it through me.”

    Social media reactions were mostly critical of Barrister Saif.

  • Shehbaz ‘endorses national dialogue’ in meeting with govt ally

    Shehbaz ‘endorses national dialogue’ in meeting with govt ally

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif is in favour of a dialogue with the government instead of mass resignations and long marches, said a leader of the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) after a meeting with him in prison.

    Muhammad Ali Durrani, the PML-F secretary general, called on Shehbaz at Kot Lakhpat Jail to hold “fruitful discussions” on the political scenario of the country. Durrani, who is an ally of the government, said he visited the PML-N chief on the directions of his party president Pir Sibghatullah because the “political leadership of the country wanted to see the nation united”.

    He said the purpose of this visit was to assert the need for talks, functioning of parliament, and end a deadlock between the opposition and the government to avert en masse resignations and march on Islamabad. He told reporters that they also discussed the union of all factions of the Muslim League.

    According to Durrani, the factions of the Pakistan Muslim League and the like-minded people should join hands — a suggestion endorsed by Shehbaz.

    He also said that his visit to the jail was for a “national cause” and he met Shehbaz, not other party leaders, because he was the “president”. In an apparent reference to Maryam Nawaz, who is the de-facto president of the PML-N, Durrani said at this point there was no need to meet “sidekicks” as Shehbaz will soon have the control of his party.

    The PML-N president, who represents the moderate group in the party, is in prison over graft charges. In his absence, the party is being run by Maryam Nawaz.