Gilani, Qureshi stress arbitrator’s role for Pakistan in Yemen conflict

MULTAN: PPP leader Yusuf Raza Gilani and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf Vice-Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, in their separate media talks, have called upon the government to play an arbitrator’s role in the Yemen conflict instead of sending troops to Saudi Arabia to take part in the war against Yemeni rebels.
Talking to journalists here on Thursday, former prime minister Yusuf Raza Gilani backed joint sitting’s resolution on the Yemen conflict, saying parliament is the supreme elected body of the people and the Pakistan People’s Party will stand by the resolution seeking neutrality of Pakistan in the crisis.
Gilani said Pakistan should play the role of an arbitrator instead of sending troops to Saudi Arab. He said the PPP would send delegations to different Muslim countries to evolve consensus on resolving the issue peacefully in Yemen.
He avoided giving comments on Saulat Mirza’s execution and Altaf Hussain’s case, saying the matter was sub-judice. Gilani said the PPP would soon decide the name of its candidate for Multan PP-196 by-polls. He also warned the media against creating any hype about the NA-246 by-polls. He ruled out any possibility of an electoral alliance between the PPP and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf.
About the recovery of his kidnapped son Ali Haider Gilani, the PPP leader said it was a sensitive matter and he could not talk on the issue. Meanwhile, talking to the media at the residence of senior journalist Jamshed Rizwani, where he had gone to offer Fateha on the death of his mother, Shah Mehmood Qureshi said Saudi-Yemen crisis was political in nature and that must be resolved in a political way. He said the Arab countries and global forces should play their role to resolve the issue peacefully. He said Pakistan should play an arbitrator’s role instead of becoming party to the conflict.
Qureshi said the PTI would accept Judicial Commission’s decision at any cost. He said the commission was powerful and the creation of such a commission had happened for the first
time in the history of Pakistan.
Qureshi said one-on-one contest was being held between the PTI and the MQM candidates in Karachi’s NA-246 constituency. He said the PTI tried its best to convince Jamaat-e-Islami to withdraw its candidate but failed. He said votes have been divided due to the JI participation and the MQM might be the beneficiary of this division of vote. He said the PTI was considering different candidates for PP-196 by-polls and a final decision in this regard would be made soon.