ISLAMABAD: After successful elections of the National Assembly speaker, deputy speaker and the prime minister, the PPP and the PML-N — the two major partners in the eight-party ruling alliance — are now busy finalising their strategy for the upcoming presidential election.

In this connection, a delegation comprising representatives of both parties met the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) leaders in Islamabad late on Monday night to seek its support for the joint candidate of the ruling coalition, Asif Ali Zardari.

The delegation comprising PML-N Senator Ishaq Dar and PPP leaders Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani, Raja Pervaiz Ash­raf, Khursheed Shah and Syed Naveed Qamar met the MQM convener Khalid Ma­­­qbool Siddiqui at the latter’s residence.

PPP leader and ex-president Zardari is facing Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) chief Mehmood Khan Achakzai in the presidential elections in which members of all the six legislatures are required to cast their votes.

While agreeing to support government’s candidates for the offices of NA speaker, deputy speaker and prime minister, the MQM-P had refused to give its commitment to vote for the nominee for president, Mr Zardari, due to some political differences with the PPP.

Sources said a misunderstanding between the two parties was created when the MQM came to know about the reports that while discussing the power-sharing formula, the PPP had asked the PML-N leadership not to include the MQM-P in the ruling coalition when they already had the required numbers to form the government at the Centre.

Also, the PPP is opposed to MQM-P’s demand for a constitutional amendment regarding the distribution of money under the National Finance Commission Award. The PML-N had already agreed to MQM’s demand and committed to make every effort to get the constitutional ame­ndment bill passed from the parliament.

However, the sources said, the MQM-P has sought more time on the issue of presidential election, vowing to come up with a decision after a thorough discussion on it in a meeting of the party’s coordination committee.

On Tuesday, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari presided over a meeting of the committee that had been constituted by the party to run the election campaign for Mr Zardari.

The panel comprises heavyweights Syed Yousuf Raza Gillani, Khursheed Shah, Syed Naveed Qamar and Raja Pervaiz Ashraf. Senator Sherry Rehman and NA Deputy Speaker Syed Ghulam Mustafa Shah also attended the meeting.

According to an official announcement of the PPP, the committee members apprised Mr Bhutto-Zardari that the PML-N, the PML-Q, the Balochistan Awami Party and Istehkam-i-Pakistan Party had already announced their support for Mr Zardari.

A delegation of BAP senators, led by party’s secretary general Senator Man­zoor Kakar, called on the former president in Islamabad and extended their “unconditional support” to him in the presidential election. Mr Zardari assured the BAP senators that he would make every effort to resolve the issues being faced by the people of Balochistan. He also thanked the BAP senators for their support to him in the presidential election.

Published in Dawn, March 6th, 2024