No govt can be formed or run without MQM-P: Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui

KARACHI: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Convener Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui on Sunday said that neither government can be formed nor can be run without the party’s support.

“The MQMP team will meet political parties, particularly Pakistan People’s Party, and the final decision would be announced in the upcoming five or six days,” said Siddiqui, while addressing the party’s workers in a park adjacent to the party’s headquarters in Karachi’s Bahadurabad neighborhood to seek decision-making powers to initiate negotiations with the political parties over the issue of the no-trust motion tabled by the opposition against Prime Minister Imran Khan.

In the gathering, the MQMP workers unanimously handed over the decision-making power to the party’s Convener and coordination committee members.

Siddiqui said that the MQMP didn’t take responsibility for saving or dissolving the government, and it only wanted to save the democracy in the country. “But at the same time, the MQMP is also not contractors of saving feudal democracy.”

Presently, there are three major political parties in the country, he said. “We have tested two political parties - the PPP and the PMLN during their governments while are still testing Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the current ruling party,” he said.

“The MQMP will take the people's demand to the PPP leadership and persuade them on it,” Siddiqui told the workers. “We are negotiating to assert our rights, not to join the government. If they want to listen, we will tell them. If they don't listen, then we will make our decision on the road.” He said that the MQMP will not back down an inch from our demands until every single person in Karachi is counted properly.

“The MQM-P has pleasant and bitter memories with the PMLN government. Our demands were met during its government but they could not stand over them,” he said.

Siddiqui also said that some rejected people will become angry when negotiations start. He said that MQMP saved democracy by supporting the PTI in forming its government in the center. “If the government dissolves, it does not matter. We have to save democracy in the country.” Siddiqui said that the MQMP has inked agreements with the PPP and the PMLN in the past but despite it, the party had to face enforced disappearance, detentions, and extra-judicial killing of the party workers. “The MQMP’s agreement with the PTI’s current government is also running on the promises and intentions and did not fulfill most of the party’s demands,” said Siddiqui. “Over 100 party workers are still missing and the party looks dumb in front of their families.”