Sindh Governor Mohammad Zubair has denied that he is part of the parliamentary board of any political party.
The denial from the governor came as he was responding to queries of newsmen after offering Namaz-e-Eidul Fitr at the old Polo Ground (Bagh-e-Jinnah) on Saturday. Karachi Mayor Wasim Akhtar, Commissioner Ejaz Ahmed Khan, and leaders of the MQM-Pakistan and of other political parties were present on the occasion.
The denial came after print and electronic media had earlier reported that the governor had been made part of the provincial parliamentary board of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz recently established in Sindh to award tickets for contesting the upcoming general elections in the province.
The media also reported that the governor had also attended some such meetings with the provincial-level leaders of the PML-N which were in fact meetings of the parliamentary board of the party.
The PML-N leaders had earlier also denied that the Sindh governor was made a member of the provincial parliamentary board of the party although the media in its reports cited some official documents of the party to prove its claims to the contrary.
“I’m the governor Sindh but it is not at all obligatory upon me to support the PML-N,” he said during his conversation with the media persons at the old Polo Ground.
“I sit with people of Jamaat-e-Islami, Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam, Tehreek-e-Insaf, and of other parties, but those pictures never become viral,” said the governor while referring to pictures doing the rounds on social and mainstream media in which he was seen meeting PML-N leaders in the city. Some of such pictures were circulated on media as purported meetings of provincial parliamentary board of the PML- N in Karrachi.
“The MQM was chosen by the people of Karachi and our bonding will become stronger with whichever party that is selected by the people,” he said. The governor said that law-enforcement agencies had an important role to play in maintaining law and order that had been restored owing to the composite and well-coordinated efforts of the federal government.
He said that Pakistan of the present day had been much prospering and secured as compared to the situation in the country back in 2013. He said that Pakistan of the present day had been progressing well in the arena of economy.
He said that strengthening of the economy, generation of employment opportunities, resolution of the energy crisis, and social sector development were some of the key achievements of the federal government that had just completed its five-year constitutional tenure.
Zubair added that during the past five years, different political parties had ruled in the four provinces and people knew well the overall performances of those governments. He said the people should exercise their right to vote while keeping in view such performances of the political parties in the arena of governance.
He said that decision-making by the people regarding their right to vote should be utilised in best of the manner in order to transform the destiny of the nation. The governor said that there had been near absolute freedom of expression in Pakistan, and gone were the days when curbs could be placed on the mass media. He said that the mass media of the present day had been playing a vital role in the process of national development.
He said that nobody could deny the role of the media in the revival and strengthening of democracy in the country. Responding to a question, the governor said that July 25, 2018, would prove to be a day of utmost importance in national history as on this date people would vote to choose their elected leadership to lead the country for the next five years.
He said that the selection of the best political leadership to lead the country would be helpful in further strengthening the national economy, social sector development and raising the general living standard of the people.
In this regard, the media should bring forth the real facts in order to help the people to choose the best leadership for the country without any difficulty. He added that the upcoming general elections would prove to be the most decisive and most important for the cause of national progress, development and prosperity.
Responding to a question regarding the Karachi mayor, the governor said the city’s mayor was a dynamic personality as he had a lot of ambitions to do something for the development of Karachi.
He said the federal government had recently announced commencement of the construction of four major development projects in Karachi under a special development package of the federal government for the city. Out of these projects, a sum of Rs2.35 billion would be spent on the construction of flyovers on road intersections at Sakhi Hassan, Five Star Chowrangi and Board Office.
A sum of Rs3.5 billion would be spent to complete Manghopir Road in two stages while Rs 860 million would be spent on the construction of Nishtar Road, and Rs1.9 billion would be spent to overhaul the fire-fighting system for the city, said the governor.