PTI seeks MQM-P’s support for Sanjrani

KARACHI: Once again, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ‘s high powered delegation visited the Bahadurabad office of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) on Tuesday to seek their support for Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani in the wake of opposition’s no-trust motion against him.

The PTI delegation was led by party’s central leader Jahangir Tareen and Opposition leader in Sindh Assembly Firdous Shamim Naqvi while the MQM-P’s convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui led the MQM-P’s delegation. Nasreen Jalil, Mayor Karachi Waseem Akhtar, deputy mayor Arshad Hassan, MNA Syed Aminul Haque and MPA Muhammad Hussain also attended the meeting from the MQM-P side.

In its press release, the MQM-P said the leaders of both parties discussed the civic issues in the urban centers of the province, including Karachi, and stressed on the devolution of power to the local governments.

The PTI had signed an agreement with the MQM-P to support the PTI in forming the government at the center. After the 18th Amendment, leaders of both parties had pledged transfer of power to the grass root level but the MQM-P leader complain that has not happened.

Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui who is also the federal minister for Information Technology said the MQM-P leaders expressed reservations over non-implementation of the agreement with the PTI. “We told the PTI delegation that Karachi had been turned into a big heap of garbage and its residents are suffering from scarcity of water and other civic issues” Siddiqui said.

“The residents expect the city mayor to address the civic problems but he is powerless. The provincial government has taken over the solid waste management and water and sewerage boards and they too are non-functional.”

The PTI delegation assured the MQM-P of early implementation over the agreement. In this connection, both parties have decided to meet again in Islamabad on July 31. However, the PTI sources were confident of MQM-P’s support in the critical voting for the chairman Senate Sadiq Sanjrani.

An MQM-P source said “we will extend support to Chairman Sanjrani and will vote against the opposition’s no-confidence motion,” However, he said the party has demanded the federal government to quickly implement the agreement for the development of the city.