PPP to part ways with federal govt if canal issue not resolved in CCI: Nasir

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader and Sindh Energy Minister Nasir Hussain Shah has warned that if the canal controversy is not resolved during the upcoming Council of Common Interests (CCI) meeting, the PPP will part ways with the federal government.

This he said when a PPP delegation led by him visited the Bahadurabad headquarters of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P). The delegation included Waqar Mehdi, Saeed Ghani and other party members.

The PPP leaders requested senior leaders of the MQM-P, including Dr Farooq Sattar and Aminul Haque, to withdraw their candidate for the upcoming Senate by-election. Speaking to the media after the meeting, Dr Sattar said the MQM-P’s central committee would hold consultations on the PPP’s request and announce their decision. He added that their discussions with the PPP also covered the proposed legislation concerning the local government system.

Speaking on the occasion, the energy minister reiterated that if the canal issue was not resolved at the CCI meeting, the PPP would quit the federal coalition. He expressed full confidence that the decision reached between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, President Asif Ali Zardari and PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari would be final.

He stated that the people of Sindh were united on the canal issue and acknowledged the MQM-P’s strong support for the PPP on the matter, both in the Sindh Assembly and the National Assembly. Shah stressed that if the PPP withdrew its support for the federal government, it would become difficult for the government to continue.