News Analysis |
Maulana Fazlur Rehman, chief of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), is confident that he is going to be the joint presidential candidate of the opposition for the election of the president. Pakistan is all set to elect its president on the September 4th. Three candidates from PTI, PPP and joint opposition alliance submitted their nomination papers.
Maulana met Mr. Asif Ali Zardari, co-chairman Pakistan Peoples Party on Monday evening in this regard. Sources disclosed that the JUI-F leader requested Mr. Zardari to withdraw PPP candidate Senator Aitzaz Ahsan from the presidential election. Maulana also told the former president that except the PPP, all opposition parties were supporting his candidacy for the office of the country’s president.
“It will be a wrong impression that we had formed an alliance and we have now broken it.” It is expected that the PPP will not withdraw its candidate and Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan will contest the presidential elections
According to media reports, PPP leaders Khursheed Shah and Farhatullah Babar were also present in the meeting, while Maulana was accompanied by Maulana Abdul Ghafoor Haideri and Mr. Akram Durrani, the sources informed. “We have listened to Maulana Fazlur Rehman’s views. We have a high-level huddle tomorrow. The party will hold the consultation on his request,” PPP leader Farhatullah Babar said.
Mr. Zardari not Happy over Maulana’s name:
Asif Ali Zardari has reportedly decided not to withdraw the name of Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan since he has some reservation over the attitude of the opposition. While responding to the opposition’s criticism of PPP for their failure to nominate a joint candidate for the upcoming presidential election, Mr. Zardari said, “We have reservations over Maulana Fazl’s credibility. Ahsan is the PPP’s candidate for president and we will contact all parties, including PTI, to support him,” he added.
Read more: Opposition fields Maulan Fazal-ur-Rehman for President
“PML-N can vote for Aitzaz Ahsan if he Apologizes to Nawaz”
PML-N’s acting secretary general Mr. Ahsan Iqbal said that Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan’s controversial statement regarding Kulsoom Nawaz’s illness had hurt the feelings of PML-N workers otherwise party bore no personal grudge against Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan.
On the same matter, the PML-N leader Mushahidullah Khan stated that PPP’s nominee Ahsan “did not care about Nawaz or his daughter, Maryam, and even termed Kulsoom Nawaz’s illness as fake”. Earlier PML-N’s Pervez Rasheed has also said that his party will support Mr. Chaudhary only if Ch. Aitzaz apologizes to the party supremum Nawaz Sharif.
Alliance or Arrangement?
Since the PPP is under attacks for breaking the alliance of opposition parties due to Mr. Zardari’s high-headedness, the party has clarified that it was never a part of the alliance. Chaudhry Manzoor dispelled the impression that the opposition parties had formed any formal alliance.
“It was not an alliance like ARD (Alliance for the Restoration of Democracy) or the PNA (Pakistan National Alliance). Had there been such an alliance, there should have been a president and a general secretary. This was an arrangement and not an alliance,” the PPP leader explained.
Read more: PML-N may support Aitzaz Ahsan, only if he apologizes to Nawaz:
Mr. Qamar Zaman Kaira said: “It will be a wrong impression that we had formed an alliance and we have now broken it.” It is expected that the PPP will not withdraw its candidate and Chaudhry Aitzaz Ahsan will contest the presidential elections on September 4th. Maulana will, however, remain unable to give tough time to the candidate of ruling alliance Dr. Arif Alvi.