Lahore:
The morale in the PPP camp seemed to rise up following a coordination meeting with the PML-N, which concluded with the assurances to tackle the grievances of the party in Punjab, with a monitoring meeting scheduled for April 12.
The two parties have also agreed to form another subcommittee of four members who will meet each week to examine progress, according to a PPP office carrier.
The session of almost two hours, held at the house of the Governor of Punjab and assisted by senior leaders on both sides, ended on a positive note – unlike the previous meeting, which had reached a dead end.
A party source credited the co-president and president of the PPP Asif Ali Zardari for progress, quoting his call to PML-N to refrain from making unilateral decisions during a joint session.
According to the source, while a few problems remain unresolved, the PML-N has recognized most of the PPP concerns, which offers resolution insurance or engage in additional discussions for achievable solutions.
However, the PML-N did not accept the PPP request to issue funds to certain notables. He wondered how individuals who did not participate in the elections or presented themselves as independents could be considered as representatives of the PPP. The question, according to the source, will be examined at the level of the committee.
Meanwhile, the PML-N agreed to resolve land issues for the Potohar campus of the University of Punjab. The question of discretionary funds, now placed in the background, has been discussed, in particular with regard to allowances to the PPP legislators.
The PPP has recognized the performance of the Punjab Minister Maryam Nawaz, but has expressed her concerns about certain governance gaps. He stressed that projects such as Sthra Punjab and model villages were mainly executed in PML-N bastions.
Coordination in southern Punjab had already improved, while in the center of Punjab, the PML-N provided the PPP for better collaboration.
According to a press release from the Governor’s house, the two parties reaffirmed their commitment to work together and quickly implement projects of public interest. They also agreed to hold coordination meetings during the first week of each month, with the next session scheduled for April 12.
The meeting also examined well-being and development initiatives of Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz throughout the province.
The meeting was followed by key representatives of the PPP and PML-N. The PPP was represented by former Prime Minister Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, the governor of Punjab Sardar Saleem Haider Khan, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Ali Haider Gillani and Syed Hassan Murtaza
The PML-N delegation was headed by the Minister of Foreign Affairs Ishaq Dar. The other notable participants were Rana Sanaullah, Khawaja Saad Rave, Azam Nazeer Tarar, Mariyum Aurangzeb and the president of the Punjab assembly, Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan.
The source of the party revealed that a subcommittee of four members including Hasan Murtaza, Ali Haider Gillani of the PPP and Malik Muhammad Ahmed Khan and Marriyum Aurangzeb of PML-N have been trained. The committee will examine progress every week.
He agreed that it was not the first time that a committee was trained by the two parties to resolve their differences, but such a committee never becomes operational. He admitted that the PML-N had previously made insurance similar to the PPP, but stressed that this time the political climate was different.
In a separate development, a party leader revealed that President Asif Ali Zardari will attend a Polo event in Lahore on Sunday. He said the president would attend an Iftar dinner at the Nawab Shehzad residence after the event. He said they had not been informed of a political meeting.
Before the meeting of the coordination committee, a meeting of the provincial task committee took place at the Governor’s house. The meeting was chaired by the central president of the PUNJAB PPP, Raja Pervez Ashraf. The meeting has mainly decided to make changes in the Sheikhupura district.
