LONDON: The Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM) chief Altaf Hussain on Friday said if his party workers did not amend themselves, they would lose their leader forever, DawnNews reported.

In a telephonic address to members of the Interim Rabita (Coordinating) Committee and other party workers, Altaf said he initiated the MQM in Karachi University (KU) to identify the rights of people who migrated during the partition, but over the time, ninety eight per cent of the party’s population had become the voice of the poor and oppressed citizens in the country.

He added that his party was not formed to perpetrate hatred towards any nationality or class, but to work for the rights of marginalised people

Moreover, he said the linguistic and regional-based problems that he had to face in his student life were not seen in the history of the region.

It is pertinent to mention that the MQM’s Rabita (Coordination) Committee was disbanded earlier on Thursday, a decision approved by party chief Altaf Hussain.

The new rabita committee would be formed on Saturday in a general workers’ meeting of the party. In the meantime, administrative affairs of the party would be managed by a seven-member committee which had already been formed.

The move came in the wake of Altaf Hussain’s address to MQM workers earlier during which he said he would purge the party of ‘corrupt and unwanted’ elements and that the cleansing process for that purpose had already begun.