How Punjabi Babus Rule Pakistan? Deprivation In Sindh, Balochistan On The Rise In The Present Government

According to a daily Jang report, the present government, instead of redressing the injustices against the long suffering provinces of Sindh and Balochistan, has been committing even more discrimination against the two. It is creating more resentment in the two oppressed and subjugated provinces as people in Balochistan have waged struggle for independence while many in Sindh want to take the same route.

According to the report:

- The government has appointed 43 out of a total of 49 federal secretaries from Punjab

- All the four chief secretaries in Punjab, Sindh, Khyber Pukhtoonkhwa and Balochistan are from Punjab

- Chief Secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan and Chief Commissioner of Islamabad are also from Punjab

- The government has appointed heads of various government organizations from Punjab and officers from Punjab are appointed on major positions in those organizations/departments.

- Officers from Punjab have been appointed in Islamabad Capital Territory Authority and the Capital Development Authority.

- Similarly officers from Punjab have been appointed in Intelligence Bureau, Federal Investigation Agency, National Police Foundation, National Highways Authority, Motorways, NADRA and several other organizations.

- Seven members in the Federal Public Service Commission are also from Punjab.

- JSQM leader Bashir Qureshi had said at a public rally in Karachi on 23^rd March that Sindh produces 69% of country’s gas & 75% of oil but it doesn’t have a single director among the 13 directors with the Oil & Gas Development Corporation Limited (OGDCL).

- According to him, there is not a single Sindhi General Manager either from among the 12 GMs with OGDCL.

This is the Pakistan for Sindh and Balochistan. Then they say why there are the feelings of deprivation in Sindh and Balochistan and why the people there are against Pakistan?

Who Should Be The Prime Minister of Pakistan

Prime Minister of Pakistan Should Always Be From Punjab. Why? Pak Army Will Never Kill Him/Her!

Mian Nawaz Sharif & His Party's Exaggerated Fear of Imran Khan & PTI

Could someone explain it to Mian Nawaz Sharif that the contest between PML-N, PTI and other parties in Punjab is political. Hence it should be handled politically. He didn't have to go to the Supreme Court of Pakistan to maintain his hold in Punjab and beat Imran Khan in next elections.

Memogate & Mian Nawaz Sharif

MNS in black coat & tie, ready to plead in Memogate case before the SC

Pakistan's Memogate:


Memogate is certainly somebody else's war. Mian Nawaz Sharif should not have got involved in it. He might have been competing with Imran Khan, thinking that if he didn't, Imran Khan might take it to the Supreme Court & score few more runs in the match to take Punjab Trophy. Is that what politics has come to in Pakistan? No, but that is how politics has always been in Pakistan! Very disappointing!

MQM: a neo fascist organization: By Farooq Tariq

Author

Indus Herald, Farooq Tariq, MQM, Karachi, Sindh, Punjab, Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa, Balochistan, Sindhis, Punjabis, Pushtoons, Baloch, racism, fascism, Zardari, Altaf, Mustafa Kamal, Hyder Rizvi, Labor Party Pakistan, MQM: a neo fascist organization

I started visiting Karachi in the mid-1990s after the Labor Party established a group there. Whenever I came to speak to a public meeting, comrades advised me to avoid verbal attacks on the MQM. “We have to live here” was the usual justification.

After the National Trade Union Federation was formed in 1998, I was one of the key speakers at the annual May Day rallies in Karachi. And whenever I ignored the advice and called the MQM a neo-fascist organization, I received maximum applause. It seemed that among the Karachi working class there was tremendous antagonism against the MQM, but not many were prepared to speak publicly against this organization.

On 10^th September 2011, speaking on GEO television, Mustafa Kamal, the former mayor of Karachi, responded to the criticism of some who talked to Hamid Mir by commenting, in coded language, of retaliation against those who dare to be critical. He falsely compared Bangladesh’s struggle for independence struggle with the situation of Karachi. One was a struggle by an exploited nationality against the atrocious treatment of the West Pakistan civilian and military establishment while in Karachi today there is a struggle to break the shackles of the neo-fascists, who have attempted to strangle working people for over three decades.

I distinctly remember 12 May 2007, when I was going to speak at a peasant rally in Punjab. I received several calls from Karachi, one from Azra Perveen, a female activist of the Labour Party. She had been part of a group organized by LPP to go to a rally at the airport and welcome the chief justice. Shots rang out while buses were still arriving. The main victims were ANP activists, whose bus had to stop and let the passengers rush to find safe places.  Azra, whose white dress was drenched in blood, was forced to hide behind a pole as she tried to help the wounded.

I tried to contact Edhi, the BBC and other media to aid activists encircled by MQM thugs. Earlier in the morning, I was informed that all the transport arranged by LPP had been withdrawn on the instructions of the MQM. No one was willing to risk their transport. In fact the previous day, even commercial painters refused to prepare the LPP banners because of the fear of retaliation by MQM. Nevertheless brave activists of the LPP, ANP and some other parties attempted to get to the airport. They found containers blocking the roads and were fired upon at several places.

On 10^th September 2011 night, I was very angry to hear Mustafa Kamal denying that the MQM had played a role in shedding blood in May 2007. Earlier in the press conference from his exile cage, Altaf Hussain, the “leader” accepted the “negligence” by the local chapter of MQM. And what a negligence, over 50 were killed, chief justice was unable to come out from the airport, all the main roads were blocked by the heavy containers and so on. This was an act of fascism. MQM believes in fascist philosophy that means the physical elimination of political opponents.

It was no accident that when Benazir Bhutto visited our bookstall in Lahore in 1992, she bought all fifty copies of a booklet “FASCISM What It Is and How To Fight It.” The booklet was written by Leon Trotsky and translated in Urdu by Dr. Khalid Javed Jan. Benazir Bhutto must have felt the need to arm the activists of PPP with this booklet. And what a historical paradox that her husband Asif Ali Zardari is trying his best to go along with this terrorist organization instead of fighting it in an effort to win a “peace” in Karachi and other cities of Sindh.

You cannot have peace by compromising with the fascists. That is a lesson evident from studying the political history of the fascism. All the social democrats and even the communists who tried to compromise with Hitler, Mussolini, and Franco, the fascist leaders of Germany, Italy and Spain, became their victims. Fascists are not democrats. They do not believe in democracy. For them democracy is just an opportunity to spread their influence. 

What is fascism? It is a system of government characterized by rigid one-party dictatorship, forcible suppression of the opposition, private economic enterprise under centralized governmental control, belligerent nationalism, racism, and militarism. It is a mass movement, with its leaders employing a great deal of socialist demagogy. Its base is the petty bourgeoisie, the middle class.

Karachi has been in the grip of a one-party dictatorship for long time. The MQM talks of revolution, instead of Socialist demagogy. It has always had close links with the military establishment; they always make efforts to smooth over any differences. The MQM gave full support to General Musharraf.

MQM has always used the race issue to unite the groups around it. Racism may be defined as the hatred of one person or group by another because of skin, color, language, customs, place of birth or any other factor. This reveals the belief that one is less than human establishes an unequal power relationship that is perpetuated through wars, slavery, the formation of nations, and legal codes.

In order to popularize its message, the MQM propagated the “discriminated” attitude of the Sindhis, Punjabis, Pushtoons and Baloch against Urdu-speaking migrants. It uses the racist card to divide the working class in Karachi, the main industrial city of Pakistan. MQM members make jokes about the native Baloch and Sindhis, revealing a contemptuous attitude that these people are not “civilized” enough to be equal to other people.

When journalist Hamid Mir asked a question from Hyder Abbas Rizvi, a representative of MQM, why the party pressurized the AAJ television channel to sack Nusrat Javed, one of the channel’s main anchor people who was sacked during a programme when he was criticizing MQM fascist tactics, he responded by denying the charges, stating that no one from MQM called the AAJ owners. That may be so, but the sheer fear of MQM retaliation might have forced the owners to sack this reputed journalist.

What had Nusrat Javed said? He simply reacted to the press conference by Altaf Hussain, the chief of MQM by stating that the whole nation was kept hostage for five hours. Yet the MQM representative slyly remarked that the MQM did not force the media to broadcast the entire conference but only gave out a press release announcing the conference. Yet it is the fear of retaliation by MQM that forced all the media to carry the entire press conference and then discussion on it live for over 5 hours.

Recent developments have forced the neo-fascist MQM retreat from their ambitious plan to expand nationally. All their sloganeering against feudalism is rolled back to their original political stand that to maintain their base among the Muhajirs, taking refuge in Karachi.

The case of the MQM exposes the failure of Pakistani state to address the question of racism and fascism. In fact, the Pakistani state is deeply rooted in religious bigotry and racist superiority where some nationalities are dominant and others are oppressed. It had tried to impose the Urdu language on the Bengalis as early as 1948. Sindhis have had to wage a struggle for their linguistic rights. The emergence of the MQM in the mid-1980, with the help of the military dictator General Zia Ul Haq was mainly based on the supposed superiority of the Urdu language. Different institutions of the state played vital role in bringing this monster up in the air and the MQM has very cleverly used this attitude against all other local, indigenous and other languages.

Today the MQM-PPP alliance reveals a crisis of bourgeoisie democracy.  The PPP government is facing one of the most real crises it has faced so far during the three and a half years of power. It is both the crisis of the system and the leadership. The so-called clever, smart, witty, intelligent, gifted and chic leadership of Asif Ali Zardari has to confront one of his most trusted handpicked Zulfiqar Mirza. The crisis has weakened the grip of PPP leadership from its own apparatus. It has weakened their basis in Sindh. That is a result of their policy of reconciliation with the neo-fascists MQM. You can never gain by allying with your own enemies.

The working class must not have any illusions in Zulfiqar Mirza’s fight against the fascists. He wants to reap the anger of the working people of Sindh against MQM and put it back to PPP or to the military establishment but he cannot wage a serious fight against the fascists.

What is the way forward? It is revealed in the current struggle of the workers at Karachi Electric Supply Corporation (KESC) for jobs and against privatization. Here we see the MQM and the PPP united to crush the heroic struggle of the KESC trade union with state repression. We must support this struggle and demand an immediate release of the workers, organizing strike support actions. Building the working-class movement in Karachi is the answer to the present crisis.

It is with the present political scenario that the forces of the Left can expose the real nature of the neo-fascist forces and the danger it presents for the working class in Pakistan. At different times, religious fundamentalists or the neo-fascist MQM have been promoted by state institutions and bourgeoisie in order to divide and conquer and thus maintain rotten capitalism. Both, along with their master, deserve rejection by the working people of Pakistan.

Farooq Tariq is spokesperson of the Labour Party Pakistan 

Back Door Diplomacy Between PPP-PML-N Begins! Nawaz Wants Foreign Guarantees if a Deal is Struck!

By Aijaz Ahmed

Islamabad:  Pakistan is an unbelievable place where anything, even something beyond one’s wildest imaginations is possible, but the political arena of the country plays wonders beyond anyone’s comprehension. The politics of Pakistan throughout history has proved to be a game in which many impossible tasks have been made possible. 

Indeed no politician closes his or her doors ever, but in a scenario where biggest opposition party apparently closed all venues for the government and seemed busy in making a grand alliance to achieve a goal of toppling the sitting government, it looks impossible that it would begin back door contacts with that very targeted opponent. However, the wonder happens again in the country’s politics and an indirect contact between the leader of the opposition party, the PML-N and President Zardari has been established, sources in the political circles have confirmed.

Measurable progress has been achieved in the indirect contacts between the two arch rival parties, sources claimed adding that this time no formal agreement will be signed if any understanding is reached.

Sources claimed that when all venues were closed, death of Mr. Hakim Ali Zardari provided a chance for ice breaking, and then the presidency made sizable progress through one of its stalwarts.

Farhatullah Babar

Farrhatullah Babar, spokesman of the president was main source for the reinstatement of the contact, sources maintained. He was the one who delivered messages of the president till he left for England last week.  However, he is not alone as few non political but common friends of both the President and Mian Nawaz Sharif, one of whom lives in England and the other in UAE, intervened during the recent days and brought the initial contacts forward, sources claim.

MNS still has faith in Farhatullah Babar as he is known as a man of principles and happened to be a close confidant of Benazir Bhutto Shaheed. He was also among those who finalized Charter of Democracy during the good old days when BB and MNS were staying at London in 2007.

FB commands respect even among PLM-N hawks and thus he succeeded in making some progress from PPP side, while Ishaq Dar and Khwaja Asif were the main people from PML-N side who despite losing opposition leader’s elections in the Senate helped the gray haired senior from PPP side, sources observe.

MNS is reported to have put some conditions for future cooperation, and survival of the current Punjab government is not included in his conditions, sources maintain; perhaps for the reason that the security of the Punjab and central government will automatically come in as a result of the dialogue.

MNS intends a totally trustworthy caretaker set up whenever the President announces a general election. He has asked for an equal share in the caretaker set up, and names will be given at later stage when the formula will be agreed, sources said adding that the next demand made by MNS is no further move on Siraiki province by PPP.

The MNS clearly demands that PPP will not make Siraiki province an issue during the next election campaign as it irritates his constituency in the country, and also may damage his traditional seats in the Siraiki belt, sources observe.

The next condition is subject to an agreement between the two arch rival parties and that is about NA seats in Sindh, Balochistan and Khyber Pakhtoonkhwa, beside consensus on some Senate Seats, sources maintain.

Although the discussion is at initial stage, but rapid development is expected as both PPP and PML-N have no time to lose. President wants an early settlement in the wake of coming general elections and Nawaz is also mounting pressure on the government for the same reason.

PML-N and other opposition parties do not want PPP to get two third majority in the Upper House of the Parliament in coming elections, thus the later is mounting pressure and moving fast with calculated moves. The PPP on the other hand feels under pressure and clearly felt shaky as it has strong impression that the grand alliance move has some intelligence backing, thus is trying to develop political understanding with major opposition party.

Although removal of Punjab government is still on cards, everybody takes this new move as a legitimate political initiative sources said but PML-N certainly eyes next elections. The party has no significant presence in KPK, has no seat from Sindh and won only one Pakhtoon seat from Balochistan. The second seat of former Governor and corps commander Lt. General Abdul Qadir was won later as Election Commission had declared him elected as an independent member and then he had joined PML-N.

MNS seriously feels that few seats were lost in all three provinces because of PPP and thus he is making demand for cooperation on these seats so as the stature of a national party is restored.

The most important part of the parlays will be the guarantees, and MNS wants no formal agreement like the previous ones, but he demands foreign guarantors so as Asif Zardari could not break his promise.

Although the discussion is at early stage, an understanding is expected between the two main rival parties as it is the only way that will enable both PPP and PML-N to complete their tenures in the governments, sources maintain. 

Punjab Will Be The New Battlefield? PPP-PML-Q Moves To Dethrone Shahbaz Sharif

By Aijaz Ahmed

As the political chess board in Pakistan seems to have relatively opened up, the knights of the PPP, the major political stakeholder of the democratic dispensation, are apparently getting ready for the next move, obviously the task to ‘take over’ Punjab, a long awaited dream of PPP since the days of first ZAB government.

The political observers are minutely watching every move of President Zardari and the shrewd Choudhris of Gujrat, and calling Nawaz Sharif a Maulvi in a recent speech by the president himself at Naudero was a clear indication of the future strategy. 

Whistles of change are being blown in the country, and this time the change is to come in Punjab, say party insiders in the power corridors of Islamabad. ‘Kashmir elections were test case for us’, say party insiders adding that every thing moved in right direction for us according to our plan. ‘Observers were indicating a clear victory for PPP in Kashmir and we achieved that task’, insiders say adding that ‘Nawaz Sharif miscalculated the situation and fell in the trap we planned for him’, they added.

Mian Nawaz Sharif rather helped our plan move forward, the party sources said and further maintained that the tone and the words President Zardari adopted in the Naudero speech were calculated and were a strong response to the speeches Mian Nawaz Sharif was delivering during the election campaign for Kashmir. MNS did not unfold PML-N’s election manifesto and future plans for Kashmir. He rather followed the line of Ch. Nisar and his other fellows who in the recent past made Mian sahib politically isolated, and thus the election campaign of PML-N in Kashmir paid us, sources said.

‘Winning two seats from Rawalpindi - Islamabad out of three had been a landmark for us and gives us confidence to move forward’, party sources are claiming. The next move will be against Shahbaz Sharif, sources added. Backdoor political contacts are established with Unification block and the group may be offered assurances for next elections, a sizable number of lucrative ministries and deputy speaker-ship in the Punjab Assembly, sources reveal.

Return of Unification Block to PML-Q fold is a matter of days now, sources claimed. Ch. Wajahat is being tipped as new Governor in case the change occurs and Chief Minister-ship will remain with PPP. Mian Manzoor Wattoo, Makhdoom Shahabuddin, Raja Riaz, Ch. Ahmed Mukhtar and Qamar Zaman Kaira are being assigned important roles to finalize the move and get results. Faryal Talpur and Syed Khursheed Shah will be overall in-charge of the move as they were in Kashmir, sources maintained.

Latif Khosa, the sitting Governor of Punjab can be assigned a new and more important role in future in case Ch. Family will be given Governorship, sources said. Setting up PPP led government in Punjab is a long awaited PPP dream as after ZAB government, Punjab was never ruled by the party itself, said party sources adding that the move will preempt political threats to the democratic set up from the present Punjab Government.

We have received information and strong evidence that the PML-N was planning a long march to press for its demand of mid term polls if it had won the Kashmir elections. The victory in the valley could have given legitimacy and strength to its demand, and thus we made counter moves and removing Shahbaz Sharif is part and parcel of the planning to release political pressure from Punjab, sources maintained. The move is planned, but time frame for the change at the moment could not be given, sources maintained adding that the change in Punjab would be the only solution for PPP to implement its manifesto and bring some relief to the common men to ensure victory in next general elections, which may be held next year. 

Gross Financial Irregularity in Punjab: Funds Allocated for Clean Drinking Water Project Diverted to “Sasti Roti” Project

Punjab Government Suggests Closure of the Foreign Funded Program

By: Aijaz Ahmed

Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif presiding over a meeting

Corruption and financial irregularities don’t seem to be limited to an individual or a single political party in Pakistan. One very often hears about the fabled corruption of the president of Pakistan and co-chairperson of PPP and also about the gross irregularities, mismanagement and corruption in the federal government. The accusers among others include the PML-N leaders who claim running a very clean government in the Punjab, the largest province in Pakistan. But as this report suggests their hands are not as clean either. They have engaged in financial irregularities and also seem to be playing gimmicks for short-term political gains at the cost of the welfare of the common men. 

The much-hyped clean government of the iron man # 2, Mian Shahbaz Sharif has been involved in certain gross financial irregularities, which have been strongly defended by party stalwarts with politics of counter allegations against their opponents.

In one instance, the provincial government tried to replace the federal governments’ initiative of financial support through Benazir Income Support Program with its own food stamp program, which proved a big failure. “Sasta Ramzan Bazar” (Cheap Ramzaan Bazaar) was another example of political gimmicks. During that program, large numbers of people would come to the distribution centers to get cheap wheat flour even in the posh localities of the major cities of Punjab. Several innocent people lost their lives in the stampedes caused due to the mismanagement by the authorities.

The Punjab government also redirected development funds allocated for the Southern Punjab towards such schemes having no real impact or benefit for the common men. The State Bank figures indicated that more than 70% of the development funds for Siraiki region were shifted to these programs. The “Sasti Roti” (Cheap Bread) Scheme also received severe criticism from across the country on this account.

The PML-N leadership blamed the federal government for the failure of the “Sasti Roti” Scheme. It became a major source of tension between the provincial government and the former Governor late Salman Taseer.

The scheme ate up a sum of 38 billion rupees in total, and according to the provincial government sources, major spending came from the projects initiated either by the federal government itself or through foreign funding. The Punjab government finally scrapped the Sasti Roti scheme after the Rs7.85 billion-loan debt accrued from commercial banks was left unpaid by the food department owing to non-provision of funds earmarked in the financial years 2009-10 and 2010-11.

Funds redirected towards the scheme included the amount allocated for a CDWA funded project of “Clean Drinking Water for All”. The Punjab government after paying initial mobilization amount to the contractor at district level redirected the remaining funds to the failed scheme. The funds released by the federal government amounted Rs. 1,961 million. However, only 285 safe and clean drinking water pumps were installed and no further payment was made to the contractor.

The amount was said to be redirected to take political mileage as the short sighted leadership considered the clean drinking water as a complete wastage or a source for political gain for the government in center. Thus, the provincial government instead of taking responsibility for the failure has asked the government through its project director to close the project.

In the letter sent through the planning division the provincial government has suggested that due to the shortage of funds it is impossible to implement the project in time, while the execution and completion dates have already passed.

Contrarily, the planning division in its summary sent to the Prime Minister House has started playing its own game. The summary reads as:

                       

Subject:            Clean Drinking Water – A Golden Opportunity.

Pakistan is currently spending around PKR 50-60 Billion annually on its health bill. In a recent study carried out by UNICEF, it was determined that almost 20-40 % of hospital beds are occupied by patients suffering from Water Borne Diseases e.g. diarrhea, cholera, typhoid, polio, hepatitis A and E. It is estimated that over 230,000 children die a year because of diarrhea and typhoid.

The World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002 set its plan of action for implementation of the Millennium Development Goals as under:

“Halve by 2015 the proportion of people without sustainable access to safe drinking water”

“Safeguard human health, including reduction in the mortality rate (associated with lack of access to safe drinking water, inadequate sanitation and poor hygiene), by improving the quality of drinking water”

For the pilot phase, the project on “Clean Drinking Water Initiative” was approved and about Rs. 1.0 billion has been spent on it with installation of 406 water filtration plants of 2000/4000 liters/hour capacity in all Districts/Tehsil Headquarters of Pakistan including AJK/ GB and FATA.

The 2nd phase of the Project was named “Clean Drinking Water for All” (CDWA) project. It was planned to install 6626 water filtration plants of (2000/ 4000 liters/ hour); one in each Union Council of Pakistan.

Revised PC-1 was approved by ECNEC in November 2007 for Rs. 15,843 million.

The contracts of Sindh, Balochistan and KPK were signed in 2007, while the contracts of Punjab, AJK & ICT packets for UF plants and RO for Punjab packets were signed on 30^th June 2009.

Total funds transferred by Federal Govt. to the Provinces/Regions on CDWA project is about Rs. 7 billion.

So far, the project has achieved substantial completion only in Balochistan, with 406 plants installed out of a total of 409 plants. In all the remaining provinces the project is incomplete due to several reasons and only about 1203 water filtration plants have been installed all over the country.

The worst situation is in Punjab, where out of 2895 plants only 285 have been installed although the contract was signed on 30^th June 2009, with a completion period of 9 months.

Federal Govt. transferred Rs. 3,771 million to Punjab Govt. out of which it paid Rs. 1,810 million as first mobilization advance to the contactors. Thus Govt. of Punjab has Rs. 1,961 million funds remaining with them, out of which it has a contractual liability to pay 2^nd mobilization advance and payments against work executed.

The Govt. of Punjab, in not making any further payments after the ^1st mobilization advance, caused the work to be suspended. Now after devolution of the Projects to the provinces, Punjab Govt. is considering capping the project. However, doing so will most likely lead to litigation initiated by the contractors.

It is opined that in a bid to drive political mileage for PML (N), the Govt. of Punjab has diverted the funds to its “Sasti Roti” program, as it wants to project PML (N) as the only political party that wishes well for the poor.

The Govt. of Punjab considers that the CDWA Project being a Federal initiative, and having far-reaching positive results for the masses across the country, would not help PML (N) in its “popularity” drive. Hence the Govt. of Punjab is basically aiming at blocking the Federal Govt. from gaining the perceived appreciation.

WAY FORWARD

Federalization of CDWA Project and Federal Govt. to become its Employer instead of Provincial Govt. and Federal PMU to administer the project execution.

The Govt. of Punjab may be asked to refund Rs. 1,961 million back to the Federal Govt. For further execution of the remaining project, necessary funds may be arranged under Shaheed Benazir Income Support / Welfare Programme.

If any other Province also decides to close this project then in national interest the Federal Govt. may also takeover it under the above mentioned programme.

The PPP parliamentarians at the Federal and Provincial levels to coordinate for the installation of the plants at the same locations as given under the contract, to prevent any conflict with the local administration.

According to the contract, Operation and Maintenance is the responsibility of the contractors for 3 years, thereby ensuring the initial success of the project’s execution. For onward execution, an arrangement to either lease out the plants to the same contractors for a further period as agreed, or to bring in fresh O&M contracting firms through a tendering process is proposed.

In this arrangement, the government would not have to bear any cost as the leasing arrangement would involve selling of treated water to the masses by the contractor. This would be done at extremely affordable prices e.g. Rs 0.50/liter for sweet water and Rs. 1.00 per liter for brackish water, while covering the operational costs.

In a nutshell, this program is focused at the basic need of providing clean drinking water to the masses and hence is strong social sector uplift and a means for Pakistan to fulfill its international obligations under the MDGs.”

However, the commission fails to understand the fall out of the decision in the changing political scenario that may lead towards political animosity between rival PPP and PML-N, which are at two poles apart at the moment. Federal government is yet to decide about the project, however, closure of the project will be difficult one for it as it will squeeze further its chances to rebuild already damaged reputation in the global financial market.

PPP-PML-Q to Wed Soon – IV: Arch Rivals Agree on Details! Intelligence Chief Ensure the Deal? Finally Faisal Saleh Hayat Shakes Hand With Zardari; Both Parties to Sign a CoD; PML-N’s Counter Moves to End Siege in Punjab

Zardari ensures second term! 

By Aijaz Ahmed

The political landscape of the country is going to be altered soon as the PPP and PML-Q have finally reached a deal with the blessings of the chief of the country’s top spy agency with a Lahore based business tycoon and a top builder of the country being one of the guarantors!

Observers believe that the ‘deal’ will certainly bring political stability in the country, which will ultimately restore the trust of the business and the investors. However, they also believe the deal will make way for change in Punjab’s political landscape as well.

The umpteenth ‘political wonder’ was finalized late Thursday night at presidency where Ch. Shujaat and Pervaiz Elahi along with few colleagues had a formal meeting and dinner with President who also happens to be Co-Chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

 The new element of the meeting whispered by sources at the Pakistan’s Capital Hill was an inventory list from the Presidency side. Sources are ready to bear all burden of the list that is being revealed and according to them the ISI Chief General Ahmed Shuja Pasha was the strongest witness and a wheeler-dealer of the agreement.

Details of the agreement are the same, which Indus Herald has already revealed with one minor addition that Ch. Pervaiz Elahi will be appointed deputy prime minister and an amendment to this affect will be made accordingly. The top builder of the country and Chief of Bahria Town, Malik Riaz was guarantor from the Presidency side while Lahore based business tycoon Ch. Siddique was present as a guarantor from Q league side, sources added.

Although, the deal in itself is being considered as yet another political achievement of Mr. Zardari even in the worst political situation, the real achievement he secured in the deal is second Presidential term for him. PML-Q has agreed to support his candidature in the next presidential elections at completion of the current term and the move is fully backed by present military leadership including the ISI chief, sources added.

‘The situation in the country needs continuity at top level, and also a person who understands army point of view beside having a backing from Europe and also from a strong US lobby is suitable’, sources say adding that he (Zardari) is the one who refuses to completely bow down to US demands in the present situation and that has created and strengthened mutual trust between the Pak Army and President Zardari. Army wants him to stay for another five years and thus the demand was made part of the agreement at the last minute, and was ensured to be agreed by ISI Chief, sources claimed.

Some of the points included in the deal indicate the reason why UK had interest in the alliance, and thus the efforts made by them have succeeded, sources also observed.

In the second round of the political parlays and to further discuss some minor details of the deal, Ch Shujaat had another meeting with President after Jumma Prayers at the Presidency and this time Faisal Saleh Hayat, a former PPP stalwart and presently Parliamentary leader of the party in National Assembly replaced Pervaiz Elahi to discuss his own grievances and reservations with the president.

Confirming the meeting, Farhat Ullah Babar, the presidential spokesman observed that ‘current political situation of the country was discussed during the meeting. The meeting was held in the context of over all political reconciliation in the country and realignment of political forces. Such meetings will also take place in the future’, he added.

Giving the actual context of the meeting, the sources and the witnesses of the meeting observed that the peer from Jhang, a remote and less developed district between the central and southern Punjab had reservations against his former party colleague for certain personal and other reasons. Both former colleagues and rivals had a warm handshake and held detailed discussion on his reservations. Both were at ease and in friendly mood when the meeting ended sources observed. Mr. Hayat was assured that PPP would not field Begum Abida Hussain against him as a candidate, while he will not pursue his case on rental power and other energy issues in return, sources confided.

Although, both the parties have agreed to enter in a marriage of convenience they still harbor mutual mistrust and have formed committees to keep a vigilant eye on each other.

The way, PPP handled Nawaz Sharif and put him in the political isolation has made the PML-Q think twice and Choudhris could not have blind trust in Mr. Zardari. Thus they insisted to sign a formal agreement on the pattern of charter of democracy (CoD) said a PML-Q leader. The charter will be signed in front of the national media, he added

As obvious, PML-N feels heat from the new alliance, as its government in Punjab may become a casualty. The besieged PML-N in its bid to end the political isolation has embarked on a new game plan. The PML-N just before the deal is being signed rushed to the nationalist political parties of Sindh having strong rivalries with the PPP. The PML-N delegation led by Zulfiqar Khosa, a Sardar from Dera Ghazi Khan had political deliberations with Mumtaz Bhutto, the famous talented cousin of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. The younger Bhutto left Begum Nusrat Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto Shaheed alone just few days after ZAB was hanged till death by military dictator Zia.

Ever since, BB was martyred at Liaquat Bagh, Rawalpindi, Mumtaz Ali Bhutto is trying to become his political and legal heir. He warmly welcomed Punjab’s leadership and assured full support. ‘We will support every political party struggling to make Pakistan stronger and prosperous’, he observed after the meeting.

Political observers are taking PML-N’s move a desperate attempt to teach a strong lesson to former ally and a partner in the Charter of Democracy in its political strong hold and power base, the Sindh province. However, they are not sure that the move will be taken as a wise and a sharp one by Sindhi voters, as they have already discarded Junior Bhutto many times, they believe.

News Byte:

In yet another political move the PML-N has formally demanded for a fresh political mandate in the shape of mid term elections. Confirming what Indus Herald had already revealed, Mian Nawaz Sharif while talking to a TV Anchorperson refreshed his demand. He said President Zardari had called him twice since he underwent heart surgery. He said he told Mr. Zardari that a fresh mandate in the shape of mid term or general national elections was the only way forward to fight the challenges being faced by the country. Mr. Zardari in return was of the view that the government shall complete its tenure, he maintained.

Nawaz Sharif was also skeptical of the role of military establishment and ISI in the national affairs. ‘I know, the government in the office must have powers to take decisions on the important issues. But as of now, major decisions on the matters related to the foreign policy, war on terror and issues like that of Raymond Davis are being taken by the military top brass, and not by the political government’, he added.