IMRAN MUKHTAR & IMRAN ALI KUNDI
ISLAMABAD - In what appears to be ‘show of flexibility’ from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in its earlier stance to shut down the major cities of the country, the party indicated on Tuesday that it could postpone its first phase of fresh protests if the government was ready to resume the stalled dialogue process.
PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mehmood Qureshi, talking to a private TV channel, said his party could postpone its December 8 protest of Faisalabad if the government resumed the stalled dialogue process. He said if the government started the dialogue process, PTI would request Imran Khan to postpone its first phase of protest. “In good faith, let us sit on December 6, which would be a positive gesture and the party leadership can tell Imran Khan that deadlock has now broken, so the Faisalabad protest should be called off,” Qureshi said.
Meanwhile, Finance Minister Ishaq Dar also hinted that dialogue with the PTI would start after completing the process of CEC’s appointment on December 5. He said, “The government and the prime minister are clear that doors should not be closed on dialogues.” The government is ready to resume talks with the PTI from where they were suspended by Imran Khan’s party on September 11.
The government had agreed in principle to constitute a judicial commission to probe the alleged rigging in the general elections 2013, he said, while addressing a press conference in the federal capital.
Dar said that 70 percent demands of PTI were futuristic, which could be finalised by the Electoral Reforms Committee. He said the PTI should take back its call to shut down Faisalabad on Monday (December 8) and resolve the issues through dialogue.
PTI chief Imran Khan, at his November 30 rally in Islamabad, had threatened to shut down the country after paralysing life in three big cities, Faisalabad, Karachi and Lahore, on different dates. PTI the other day altered its plan, being named as Plan C by the party chief, and said the protest would be held now on December 15 instead of December 4 in Lahore while the countrywide shutdown would be on December 18 instead of December 16. The schedule of protest in Faisalabad on December 8 and Karachi on December 12 remained unchanged.
Sources in the PTI said the party was showing flexibility as it did not announce the fresh protest programme with proper preparation and planning. There is a view in the party that this protest plan could also fail. This is the reason that it is now focusing on resumption of talks, a PTI insider said.
Ishaq Dar, in his press conference, informed reporters that the government was trying to give only three names from both the opposition and the government to the Parliamentary Committee to pick one of them for the slot of chief election commissioner today (Wednesday), hoping it would be finalised before the Supreme Court’s deadline of December 5.
Dar said as per the Constitution, both the opposition and the government should separately give three names to the Parliamentary Committee for the CEC slot. However, the government was trying to give three names to the Parliamentary Committee with the consent of the opposition leader on Wednesday (today).
The economic wizard of the PML-N said the National Assembly speaker would summon the Parliamentary Committee meeting on December 4 to pick one of the names from the list of the three names and the process would be completed before the apex court’s deadline of December 5.
However, the finance minister did not disclose any name for the slot of CEC. He said the prime minister, before leaving for London to attend the Afghan conference, had given him guidelines for the ongoing process of appointing CEC. “Opposition Leader Khursheed Shah is currently out of the city (Islamabad), but I am in contact with him,” said Ishaq Dar.
NO OBJECTION TO TALKS WITH PTI: PM
APP adds from London: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif on Tuesday said he, as leader of the house, and Khursheed Shah, as leader of the opposition in the National Assembly, were creating an ideal democratic rapport by holding consultations on vital issues, leaving behind the politics of the 90s which was dominated by political vendetta (between their respective parties – PML-N and PPP).
Talking to media persons in London, the prime minister said reenactment of the abhorring political game reminiscent of the 90s was unfortunate.
To a question, he replied that he and the leader of opposition were holding positive consultations over the appointment of a new chief election commissioner. The prime minister said the government was still trying to improve on many issues.
About resumption of negotiations with the Pakistan Tahreek-e-Insaf, he said they strongly believed in settling issues through talks. “We are democratic people. Negotiations should be constructive. If they want to talk, we would have no objection,” he added.
Nawaz Sharif regretted the threats of closures as unfortunate. He also rejected certain reports on his proposed meeting with Imran Khan by saying the PTI chief had a misunderstanding.
To a query about the London Conference on Afghanistan, for which he has travelled there, the prime minister said during the visit of the Afghan president to Pakistan, he had held very constructive talks with him and now he had arrived in London on the invitation of his British counterpart. He termed the conference continuity of the understanding developed between the two leaders.