ISLAMABAD - Former president Asif Ali Zardari has asked his party to stop worrying about the “turncoats” and let them leave the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) as part of a “cleansing” process, close aides said.
The PPP co-chairman believes said that the party cannot bank on “opportunists” to make a comeback in Punjab, a senior PPP leader who met Zardari in Dubai recently told The Nation on Sunday.
“Zardari is hardly concerned over the recent defections. He believes they had left the party long ago,” the PPP leader said.
He said that Zardari wanted the PPP to let the “opportunists” go so that the party could focus on the 2018 polls.
“He thinks the defections will cleanse the party and will not cost the PPP,” the PPP leader added.
In the recent weeks, former ministers Firdous Ashiq Awan and Nazar Mohammed Gondal quit the PPP to join the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), while Nawabzada Ghazanfar Gul is considering joining the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).
The PPP, after the 2013 drubbing, was hoping to improve standing in Punjab but is finding it hard to achieve the goal.
During Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s time, Punjab was a stronghold of the PPP but the support slowly declined.
The ruling PML-N has been firmly in control in the province for several years.
The province, with a bigger population than all the other provinces combined, is effectively the “king-maker” with scores of National Assembly seats on offer.
In the 2013 polls, the PML-N hardly performed in other provinces but swept Punjab to form government in the centre. PPP chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has appointed a new team in the province, dividing it into two parts – the south and central Punjab –to realise his dream of doing better in the populous unit.
But before Bilawal could launch his campaign, the dissidents have started to jump off the ship.
In 2013, the PPP won only eight seats in the Punjab Assembly out of 371, prompting the commentators to reduce it to a “pressure group” instead of a national party.
PPP Information Secretary Chaudhry Manzoor Ahmed said that the defections in Punjab were no surprise.
“They were just waiting for the right time. They had almost quit the party after the 2013 polls,” he said.
The PPP leader said that the defections did not shock Zardari or Bilawal.
“This [the defections] was a foregone conclusion. Our leadership wants to move on,” he told The Nation.
Ahmed said that Firdous Ashiq Awan had joined the PPP after enjoying power with Pervez Musharraf.
“She had effectively left us after the 2013 polls. She is now hoping to return to the parliament on PTI ticket,” he added.
The PPP leader said that Nawabzada Ghazanfar Gul’s whole family had joined the PML-N.
“His family members are PML-N lawmakers. He was only waiting for the polls as he was offered a PML-N ticket for the 2018 polls. For the previous elections, his brother was awarded the ticket,” he explained. Ahmed said that Nazar Mohammed Gondal had grievances about his brother’s corruption case.
“He complains that the PPP did not help. How could we help when we were in the opposition? We could not even help Dr Asim Hussain,” he contended.
Ahmed said that Bilawal would be in Lahore from June 5 for at least eight days.
“He will hold meetings with the party leaders and also visit Multan,” he said.
PPP Punjab leader Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar told The Nation that Zardari and Bilawal were not worried about the “expected defections”.
“The party is still hopeful of making a comeback in Punjab. Two, three defections can’t ruin the party,” he maintained.
Khokhar said that Bilawal would lead a campaign in Punjab to improve the party’s position in the province.
“If some have left us there will be some who will join us. This happens during the elections. As we are getting closer to the general elections, we will see a lot of this among all the parties,” he said.
“We will find new candidates. There is no crisis,” Khokhar remarked.