Tag: PPP

  • ’PPP not discussed in PDM’: Maulana Fazl

    ’PPP not discussed in PDM’: Maulana Fazl

    Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) chief Maulana Fazl ur Rehman on Saturday said that the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and Awami National Party (ANP) were not discussed in the forum, as they are not part of the alliance.

    “They [PPP] can still contact the PDM leadership and apprise them about their intentions. But it is not something that we will waste time over anymore during PDM meetings,” said Maulana Fazl.

    Earlier on Friday, Shehbaz Sharif said that no party has the right to bring or kick another party out of the alliance. “PDM is a forum and decisions are taken with consensus.”

    PDM also rejected the government’s “one-sided” electoral reforms, which include the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs), and announced a fresh wave of anti-government protests.

    “PDM rejects the government’s unilateral electoral reforms ordinance, including the voting machines, and terms it as pre-poll rigging,” said Fazl.

    In this regard, the Election Commission of Pakistan, which is responsible for holding transparent elections, should call a meeting of all political parties to take a unanimous decision on reforms, Fazl added.

    The Opposition alliance announced a future course of action. On July 4, a massive anti-government protest will be held, followed by another one in Karachi on July 29.

    On the occasion of August 14, a massive protest will be held in Islamabad, with PDM showing solidarity with Kashmiris and Palestinians.

    The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will host a budget seminar soon to form a unified strategy during the budget session, while the task to hold the event has been given to PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif.

    The PDM chief said PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif attended the meeting via video, while other Opposition party leaders were present in person.

  • ‘No party has the right to kick another party out of PDM’: Shehbaz Sharif

    ‘No party has the right to kick another party out of PDM’: Shehbaz Sharif

    “No party has the right to bring or kick another party out [of the alliance]. Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is a forum and decisions are taken with consensus,” said President of Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Shehbaz Sharif on Friday.

    Shehbaz further added that we had invited ‘parliamentary leaders’ to the dinner, which had nothing to do with the PDM

    “Shahid Khaqan Abbasi has already clarified this matter. I, being the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly, have a duty to fulfil. We had gathered to discuss the upcoming budget, the ill-performance, and massive failures of the sitting government,” added Shehbaz.

    Meanwhile, Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry, took to Twitter to comment on Shehbaz Sharif’s stance. “Shehbaz Sharif should first focus on uniting the PML-N instead of uniting the opposition. The boat is in a whirlpool.”

    Chaudhry further added that the government was ready to sit with the Opposition to discuss election reforms.

    The PML-N will host an important meeting of the PDM in Islamabad today. The meeting will take place at the PML-N secretariat. The meeting will be held under the chairmanship of the Leader of Jamat Ulema-i-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) and acting president of PDM Maulana Fazlur Rehman.

    Matters relating to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Awami National Party (ANP) will be contemplated upon. Opposition leaders will decide if both parties can be taken back again in the alliance or not.

    The PDM leaders will discuss the political situation in the country and the future strategy of the anti-government alliance.

    Just a day ago, Shehbaz in a TV show hinted at his plan to convince his elder brother and the PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif on these issues in the larger national interest.

  • Bill to make marriage of 18-year-olds mandatory will be ‘bulldozed’ by PPP, says Bakhtawar

    Bakhtawar Bhutto Zardari has said that the Sindh compulsory marriage act, 2021 will be bulldozed by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and that the bill has nothing to do with the Sindh Government.

    “[The bill has] nothing to do with Sindh Government but will be bulldozed by PPP,” wrote Bakhtawar in a tweet.

    In a sperate tweet, Bakhtawar clarified that the bill has been proposed by an MPA from Jamat-e-Islami (JI).

    The proposed bill seeks to make it mandatory for parents to marry off their children as soon as they turn 18. The proposed bill also states that parents who do not have any justified reason for the delay in the marriage of an adult will be fined.

    However, the bill is unlikely to be passed but the proposed bill got a massive reaction from social media with most people criticising it.

  • ‘Not answerable to Maryam or Nawaz’: Bilawal

    ‘Not answerable to Maryam or Nawaz’: Bilawal

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Wednesday that the PPP was not answerable to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) Vice-President Maryam Nawaz or PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and that his perspective remained unchanged.

    Addressing a press conference in Badin, the PPP chairman acknowledged that he had torn the show-cause notice and there was no change in his point of view on the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).

    “We are not answerable to Maryam or Mian Sahab. We are answerable to the PPP and the PPP’s workers and we think the real joy will be in doing politics together with the PPP’s workers,” says Bilawal.

    Bilawal said that Shehbaz Sharif was the leader of the opposition in the National Assembly and the PML-N president, thus the PPP would consider his opinion and statements to be official PML-N policy and conduct its politics according to that.

    “Instead of opposing the PPP, our friends in the opposition should target the government,” added Bilawal.

    In response to Prime Minister Imran Khan’s concerns about the worsening law and order situation in Sindh, Bilawal said that the law and order situation in Sindh has improved, a move that has been made possible with the help of police.

    “Sindh police have the full potential to restore peace in the province,” Bilawal said. “The interior minister [Sheikh Rasheed] is ready to give a lecture about another province but is not ready to protect journalists in Islamabad.”

    Bilawal also condemned the attack on Islamabad-based journalist Asad Toor a day ago and said that journalists in Sindh are also being targeted for speaking the truth.

    “We demand the highest level of investigation into the attack on journalists,” said Bilawal. 

  • ’PDM is not Shahid Khaqan’s bonded slave’: Kaira

    ’PDM is not Shahid Khaqan’s bonded slave’: Kaira

    Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) leader Qamar Zaman Kaira said that the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) is not Shahid Khaqan Abbasi’s personal slave or bonded labour that he can impose his views on the Opposition alliance.

    Kaira was talking to anchorperson Shahzeb Khanzada on Geo News’ programme ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Saath’.

    Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) leader Shahid Khaqan Abbasi had said he would quit PDM if PPP was allowed to rejoin the Opposition alliance unconditionally.

    Kaira also said that while Shehbaz Sharif is making efforts to unite the Opposition, Shahid Khaqan was tearing it apart.

    Maryam Nawaz on Tuesday said Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner had nothing to do with PDM.

    PPP leadership also urged Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman to take back his words against the party.

    Fazl on Tuesday said the PPP and the Awami National Party (ANP) could rejoin the PDM if they apologie to the Opposition alliance for going against its decisions.

    Fazl said both the PPP and ANP had been given sufficient time to get back to the PDM leadership, but they have not done so.

    “There are currently no proposals to invite PPP and ANP at the PDM meeting on May 29,” Fazl said. He added that during the upcoming PDM meeting, the Opposition leaders will decide the future of the PPP and ANP in the alliance.

  • ‘Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner had nothing to do with PDM’: Maryam Nawaz

    ‘Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner had nothing to do with PDM’: Maryam Nawaz

    PML-N Vice-President Maryam Nawaz on Tuesday said her party president Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner had nothing to do with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM). Shehbaz held a dinner on Monday for Opposition leaders, including those from the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and the Awami National Party (ANP).

    “He hosted the dinner as the leader of Opposition, as they had to devise a strategy for the budget session,” said Maryam. “Shehbaz Sharif is the Opposition leader [in National Assembly]. He hosted the dinner for parliamentarians. My presence was not needed,” she said when asked about her absence from the dinner.

    Maryam said PDM had not received any response from the PPP regarding the party’s return to the alliance. She said that when the PPP addresses PDM’s concerns, the alliance will deliberate over the matter.

    Meanwhile, PDM Secretary-General Shahid Khaqan Abbasi stated that there was no place for the PPP within the opposition alliance until it restored the trust it had broken.

    Speaking to the media in Islamabad, the PML-N leader said that  the opposition alliance was formed for a particular purpose. “If you are not committed to the movement, then there is no place for you within the PDM.”

    “The PPP can’t just rejoin the movement. They can only do so once they restore their trust in the PDM. The alliance does not have a revolving-door policy that you break its trust, leave the movement and try to come back again when you face difficulties,” added Khaqan.

    “The door is closed. The door will only open when you rebuild trust,” he said.

    Maryam Nawaz’s media talk

  • Protection of Journalists Bill

    Protection of Journalists Bill

    The Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI ) and Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) have both prepared two bills for the protection of journalists in Pakistan.

    The federal cabinet in April approved two bills – the Protection of Journalists and Media Professionals Bill, and the Forced or Involuntary Disappearance (Criminal Law Amendment) Bill.

    Meanwhile, the bill for the protection of media persons was presented in the Sindh Assembly by the PPP government. The bill enables the provincial government to take effective steps to ensure that every journalist and media practitioner’s right to life, safety and security as provided under Article 9 of the Constitution are safeguarded.

    The Freedom Network’s annual state of press freedom report released in April 2021 highlighted a dramatic escalation in the climate of intimidation and harassment of journalists and the media in Pakistan.

  • PPP to attend Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner today

    PPP to attend Shehbaz Sharif’s dinner today

    The PPP has decided to attend a dinner being hosted by PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif for members of the opposition parties today (Monday).

    The PPP delegation will reportedly include Opposition leader in the Senate Yousaf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervez Ashraf and Sherry Rehman.

    PPP leader Nayyar Hussain Bukhari said that this was an invitation for opposition leaders and not of the Pakistan Democratic Movement alliance ( PDM). He further added, “Neither does the PDM president nor its secretary-general has the authority to kick PPP out of the alliance.”

    “The differences with PPP could have been resolved over discussions or sit downs instead of sending show-cause notices,” Bukhari added.

    Sources in the PPP said the party’s senior leadership thought attending the dinner would serve in the best interest of the opposition, in giving a tough time to the PTI government in the up coming budget session in the National Assembly, The News had reported.

    As per earlier reports, Shehbaz Sharif invited the opposition leaders for a dinner on Monday, in Islamabad.

    However, PPP and ANP were not invited by the PML-N at an Opposition meeting luncheon in Senate earlier today.

  • Shehbaz Sharif invites opposition leaders over a dinner to discuss PDM

    Shehbaz Sharif has invited the opposition leaders for a dinner on Monday (May 24) at 07:30 PM in Islamabad, according to media reports.

    Reports say that among others, former President Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and JUI-F chief and Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) head Maulana Fazlur Rehman have been invited to the dinner.

    PDM and the current political situation will be discussed in the dinner.

    Read more- Friendship ended with PPP? PDM removes party leaders from WhatsApp group

    Yesterday, PPP Sindh President Nisar Ahmed Khuhro said that PPP has not left PDM yet, adding that a decision will be made in this regard when the PPP will be invited to PDM’s meeting with the heads of all parties involved.

  • ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’ was made in ‘Purana Pakistan’, alleges journalist

    ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’ was made in ‘Purana Pakistan’, alleges journalist

    Prime Minister Imran Khan inaugurated a low-cost housing colony for labourers and industrial workers on Wednesday.

    The PM said the housing scheme for workers in Peshawar was launched in 2011 but it remained incomplete since then as it was not a priority because it was meant for the poor labourers. He said he wanted to see how much the condition of the poor had improved after the five-year tenure of the PTI government. This new project has now been put under the ‘Naya Pakistan Housing Scheme’.

    However, a report by journalist Izharullah sets the record straight about the origins of the scheme. 

    

    The labour colony in the Regi Lalma area of Peshawar was approved in 2008 during the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) regime. Work on the project began in 2011, with a total of 1,200 flats. However, in 2013, construction of 1,000 additional flats was approved. 
    

    The project was funded by the Workers’ Welfare Board, an organisation working for the welfare of workers, and funding for it was obtained from the Workers’ Welfare Fund set up under the same board.
    

    Addressing the inaugural function, PM Imran Khan said that the government had launched a ‘new Pakistan housing scheme’ under which the working class and the poor would get houses. 
    

    At the time the colony was approved, there was a PPP-Awami National Party coalition government in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa. Work on the labour colony began in April 2011, and was completed in 2020. Some work is still pending though.
    

    These flats were approved for labourers in Hattar, Peshawar, Takht Bai, and Haripur. These projects were later inaugurated in 2013 by the then PPP Provincial Labour Minister Sher Azam Wazir. The old name plates have been removed and the housing scheme has been inaugurated once again. 
    

    Special Assistant to Chief Minister Khyber Pakhtunkhawa, Kamran Bangash, tweeted that about half of the flats were started in 2011, while the rest were started in 2013. “However, due to the Workers Welfare Fund being a federal department, the funds of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were cut off during the Nawaz era,” tweeted Bangash.