HYDERABAD, Feb 10: Leaders of the People’s Party Parliamentarians have called upon the government to hold general elections in the country to get it out of the present crisis.

In a joint statement issued here on Friday, leaders of the PPP Hyderabad chapter, MPA Zahid Bhurgari, Saleem Shah Bukhari, Fayaz Ali Shah and Amanullah Siyal said that instead of eliminating poverty, the government had adopted the policy to eliminate the poor.

They said the poor were groaning under the weight of hyperinflation and sugar was being sold at an unimaginable price in the open market.

They said killings of innocent people in Hangu was an ample proof of the failure of the government to maintain law and order in the country.

The PPP leaders said the government had failed on all fronts and justice and law, constitution and parliament have become a misnomer.

They said a schedule for return of party chairperson, Ms Benazir Bhutto, could be announced any day and the rulers should pack up their bags.

They said the only panacea to extricate the country from the present morass lay in fresh general elections.

LUMHS: The additional controller of examinations of the Liaquat University of Medical and Health Sciences has announced that the last date for submission of examination forms for final professional MBBS (new course) bi-annual examination of 2005, at LUMHS, Chandka Medical College Larkana and People’s Medical College, has been fixed as February 27, without late fee.

The last date for submission of examination forms with late fee of Rs200 has been fixed as March 6, 2006.

MARCH PLANNED: The secretary-general of the Jamat-i-Islami, Syed Munawar Hassan, has announced to hold ‘million march’ in big cities of the country soon to protest against publication of sacrilegious cartoons in western newspapers.

He was speaking at a training course for workers of his party and later talking to media here on Thursday.

Those who also spoke on the occasion were assistant secretary general of the party, Mian Maqsood Ahmed, provincial secretary, Rashid Naseem, Karachi amir of the party, Dr Mairajul Huda, and local leaders, Shaikh Shaukat Ali, Dr Fawad Ahmed and Professor Inayat Ali Khan.

Mr Hassan condemned the cartoons and said that protests were being held throughout the world.

He said the anti-Islamic forces were not able to digest the victory of Hamas in Palestine.

The secretary general said confrontation between the new world order and Islam was not a new phenomenon and was present since centuries.

He said the opposition will hold a meeting on February 11 to evolve a strategy to launch country-wide protest demonstrations against the publication.

Commenting about the marathon, he said the PPP and the government were in fact competing with each other to earn goodwill of the United States.

The secretary general said both the PPP and General Pervez Musharraf were supporters of the US and had a similar agenda.

He said that 1977 like situation was being created in the country and the people were quite ready to launch a movement against the rulers.

Referring to the proposal of the PML to General Pervez Musharraf to hold general elections in 2008 instead of 2007, he said the PML had been formed to destroy the constitution.

He said the opposition would not allow General Musharraf to remain in power for long.