LARKANA: The Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) and the Larkana Awami Ittehad (LAI) on Tuesday announced formation of an electoral alliance in Sindh to challenge Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

The announcement was made at a joint public meeting held at Jinnahbagh Chowk in the city. A sit-in was also held by the participants to register their protests against inflation and price-hike in the country.

Speaking at the public meeting, JUI-F Sindh general secretary Maulana Rashid Me­h­mood Soomro criticised both the Paki­stan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government at the Centre and PPP government in Sindh, holding them responsible for the unpre­cedented price hike and inflation. He attrib­uted the situation to PTI’s flawed economic policy and PPP’s corrupt practices as well as its ineffective control over prices of essential commodities.

Discussing prospects of the electoral alliance of his party with LAI, Maulana Soomro recalled that Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who was being portrayed as the next prime minister, had been handed defeat in his constituency twice. “He will face a similar result in the upcoming elections,” he added.

Politics is difficult for him to do, says Rashid Soomro

“Bilawal is my brother, but politics is something difficult for him to do,” he remarked, and claimed: “Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari had offered me a Senate seat or ministry in lieu of JUI-F’s support. But I rejected the offer because we are not doing politics for such gains”.

The JUI-F leader also claimed that it was the political pressure developed in the wake of LAI’s popularity that the PPP chairman was now visiting small lanes of Larkana to drum up the dwindling support for him from party workers at UC level.

Criticising the PTI government, Maulana Soomro said the economic crisis in the country was constantly deepening. “People are not able to buy even pulses in the obtaining conditions,” he said, and termed the federal government’s economic policy flawed.

While skyrocketing prices of common commodities had devastated the poor, frequent increase the rates of petroleum products and tariffs of electricity and gas had made people’s life miserable, he deplored.

Turning to PPP’s rule over Sindh, the JUI-F leader said element of corruption had ruined the system. “In more than 52 departments, the volume of daily corruption is around Rs1 bill­ion,” he claimed, and criticised the provincial government for having failed to control prices. “[PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari is currently off the screen,” he observed.

Maulana Soomro expressed his concern over the poor law and order in Larkana. “Cleanliness drive in the city is carried out due to Bilawal’s presence,” he noted.

In his speech, Grand Democratic Alliance MPA from Larkana city Moazzam Abbasi predicted PPP’s downfall owing to its wrong and failed policies. “I have regards for Bilawal but if pursued the policies of [his aunt] Faryal Talpur, he is bound to meet with defeat in elections,” he said, adding: “He has already faced defeat in Larkana twice in the past”. He claimed that the PPP had now turned into “a party of contractors”.

Both Maulana Soomro and MPA Abbasi severely criticised the district police chief and advised him to focus on maintaining law and order instead of Bilawal’s protocol. Mr Abbasi also urged the federal government to think about Sindh.

Earlier, separate processions were taken out from Waleed town and Madressah Isha’atul Quran wal Hadees which were led by MPA Abbasi and Maulana Soomro, respectively. The participants filled the public meeting venue of Jinnahbagh Chowk.

Local leaders and activists of Sindh United Party, PML-N, Awami Tehreek, Jeay Sindh Mahaz, Sindh Taraqqi-pasand Party, PPP-Shaheed Bhutto and some other anti-PPP groups also attended the public meeting and spoke to the participants.

Published in Dawn, November 3rd, 2021