PML-Q flexes muscles to support DNs

ISLAMABAD - Pakistan Muslim League (Quaid) is poised to stage mass protest demonstrations, after partys central polls scheduled on July 20, in the country, particularly in Punjab, against the dissolution of district governments two months prior to their tenure and appointments of administrators. The sources within the party told TheNation on Monday that the PML-Q would fight the battle in support of its embattled district nazims (DNs) on two fronts. The first plan is to challenge the governments move in the apex court and pursue it vigorously, while the second front will be opened in streets to give government tough time with the help of thousands of district, tehsil, union council nazims as well as councillors, revealed the sources. Talking to TheNation, former provincial law minister Raja Basharat said that PML-Q was in constant touch with district nazims and would lend them whole-hearted support. The government has insulted thousands of public representatives by taking the decision of replacing them with bureaucrats, he added. When asked whether or not the PML-Q intended to take the issue to the streets after party polls, Basharat said that his party was not going to launch any protest movement on the issue, adding that the battle would be fought in the court of law first. He said that PML-Q would resist Punjab governments anti-democratic amendments in the existing local bodies structure. Raja said that PML-Qs legal experts would also assist DNs in litigation process. Tariq Bashir Cheema, District Nazim Bahawalpur, who is also a close aide of Ch Pervaiz Elahi, said that the writ petition against government decision of dissolving district governments two months prior to their tenure would be challenged in the Supreme Court in a day or two. He said that the governments move of replacing democratic representatives of masses by bureaucrats had exposed rulers sincerity with its pro-democracy slogans. On the question of PML-Qs strategy on the issue, Cheema said that the district nazims of Punjab wanted to keep the issue above party affiliation and politics. We are outgoing nazims as few weeks are left in our tenures expiry but we are fighting for the system because it was serving the masses at grassroots level, he observed. On the other hand, PML-N government of Punjab is all set to tighten the noose around outgoing corrupt district, tehsil and union council nazims and would pursue the cases against them in the Anti-Corruption Establishment (ACE) before the end of the tenure of incumbent local governments. Last year, the Punjab government had accused 35 district nazims of corruption and embezzlement of billions of rupees on the basis of a report by the Auditor General of Pakistan. The sources in PML-Q revealed that partys top command had assured beleaguered nazims of partys full support, particularly in the case if PML-N government in Punjab opted to launch crackdown against them on the charges of corruption. The reaction by PML-Q would be equal to the action taken by Shahbaz Sharifs government against outgoing DNs, said the sources, adding that Q-League would also take Jamaat-e-Islami and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf on board before launching such a mass movement. District Nazim Attock Major (Retd) Tahir Sadiq said that the district nazims were not struggling for their personal motives or vested interests, rather they all wanted to save the system from derailment. My second term of the office is ending in October 2009 and as per law I can not be the candidate for the slot for the third time but still I am striving hard to save the system which has proved its success in resolving masses problems at their doorsteps, he added. Criticising Punjab government, Sadiq said that PML-N wanted that all powers should rest with its chief minister. On this issue, even those DNs who have affiliation with PPP are standing with us and district nazims from across the country would soon hold a national convention on the issue, besides taking up the matter before the Supreme Court, he said, adding that as the last resort, they could take the issue to streets to register their protest.