IN THE NEWS: PPP CHIEF LOOK FOR NEW TEAM (JULY 26, 2016)

Written by admin on Tuesday, July 26th, 2016

Selected by Olivier Immig & Jan van Heugten

PPP chief looks for new team
SOURCE: The Nation
Tuesday, July 26, 2016
By SHAFQAT ALI

ISLAMABAD – Chairman Pakistan People’s Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has played the first big shot of his political career by sacking his party’s chief minister in Sindh and he is in for sending home some more oldies in the coming weeks, The Nation learnt.

Party sources said Bilawal had been convincing his father Asif Ali Zardari since the PPP won the 2013 polls in Sindh to bring in a relatively younger person at the helm instead of continuing with veteran Qaim Ali Shah.

Senior Zardari, however, decided in Shah’s favour until he changed his mind in son’s favour on Sunday night in Dubai where Bilawal had his wish fulfilled.

The young PPP chief is expected to chair a meeting of the party in Karachi today (July 26) to complete the formality for the change at the Chief Minister’s House.

“Qaim Ali Shah will hand over his resignation to Bilawal and he will announce the new CM and his cabinet. The meeting can be delayed for a day in case Bilawal is busy,” a senior PPP leader who attended the Dubai meeting told The Nation.

A statement issued by PPP spokesman Senator Farhatullah Babar earlier said: “Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is scheduled to return to Karachi early in the week starting Monday to meet the provincial party leaders and party lawmakers before finalizing changes in the Sindh cabinet.”

In April, the PPP chief had dissolved the party organisation in the four provinces handing over the responsibilities to the coordination committees until new office bearers were elected. Bilawal was also expected to bring a change in Azad Jammu Kashmir after the recent drubbing in the elections.

Presently the party is being run on interim basis by Raja Pervez Ashraf, Rana Farooq Ahmad Khan, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Chaudhry Manzoor and Nadeem Kaira in central Punjab. In South Punjab, Syed Yousaf Raza Gilani, Makhdoom Ahmed Mehmood, Shoukat Basra, Toochi Khan and Nawazish Ali Pirzada the members of the Coordination Committee. In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province the committee includes Senator Khanzada Khan, Hamayoon Khan, Noor Alam, Senator Rubina Khalid and Shujah Khan.

For Sindh, the PPP chief had nominated Nisar Ahmed Khoro, Maula Buksh Chandio, Murad Ali Shah, Nafisa Shah and Rashid Rabbani as Coordination Committee. In Balochistan, the Coordination Committee members are: Sardar Fateh Muhammad Hasni, Haji Madad Ali Jatak, Senator Sabir Baloch, Aijaz Baloch and Sardar Sirbuland Khan.

These coordination committees were asked to send their recommendations within three months – a deadline that will end in July. There were directions from the PPP chief to these leaders to consider younger people for main roles against the older politicians.

The senior PPP leader said Bilawal will turn to the reorganisation in all the provinces and AJK once the Sindh issue has been settled. The interim committees, he said, will be asked to come up with their recommendations.

“The plan is to inject new blood and restrict the older ones to advisory roles. Asif Ali Zardari is himself also in advisory role while Bilawal is taking all the important decisions in the party. The oldies may not find place in the playing eleven,” he added.

He said Qaim Ali Shah was strictly following the party policy as the Chief Minister but had damaged it by his advanced age and lazy gestures. “Bilawal wants someone who can jump around like him. Murad Shah fits that role. Otherwise Bilawal respects the experienced leaders,” he remarked.

PPP leader Latif Khosa said Bilawal had taken the decision to replace Qaim Ali Shah and he will take the decision on party’s reorganisation.

“This was not Asif Ali Zardari’s decision. Bilawal is a powerful chairman,” he maintained.

Khosa said Bilawal will take decisions on reorganisation of the party keeping in view the performance of the party activists. He said the provincial cabinet would be reshuffled after intra-party consultations.

Senator Farhatullah Babar said Bilawal will consult party leaders before finalising the new team to run the Sindh government.

The PPP has a simple majority in the Sindh Assembly with 92 legislators, followed by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement with 51, the Pakistan Muslim League (Functional) 11, the PML (Nawaz) 10 and the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI)’s three members.

Reports said Murad Ali Shah, a senior minister for finance, energy, planning and development, was the strongest candidate for the slot CM’s slot. Other contenders included Nisar Khuhro, Manzoor Wasan, Sohail Anwar Siyal and Agha Siraj Durrani.

 

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