Naimat Khan
KARACHI: Chief of Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) Dr Farooq Sattar on Friday said that his party had summoned a multi-party conference for a good and big cause but political parties excused at eleventh hour, which indicates a secret hand behind the move.
Talking to media outside the ATC, where he appeared in connection with August 22 violence inciting speech case, Sattar said that he openly condemned the incident of August 22 and disown anti-Pakistan elements on the same day. We hope to get justice, he said.
“It was very surprising to face the boycott by all political parties. People of Sindh will reject these parties in 2018 polls,” the MQM-P leader said. “Everyone welcomed us when we gave the invitation and accepted our invitation but then we came to know about their boycotts through news channels,” he complained.
To a question Sattar said that until a transparent tax system comes in place, the country will continue to get flawed parliaments. The situation of the country will not improve after the disqualification of a prime minister, he added. Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) on Tuesday postponed a Multi-Party Conference scheduled to be held in connection with “Day of Deliverance” after major political parties refused to attend it without citing any major reason.
Dr Farooq Sattar, the Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan’s Chief, said that by opting to skip the conference these political parties, including Pakistan Peoples Party, Jamaat-e-Islami, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz, Pakistan Muslim League Function and Pakistan Muslim League-Q, have endorsed the anti-Pakistan rhetoric of Altaf Hussain.
“The conference was summoned for a big purpose and we had done our best efforts to make it successful. Most of the parties had confirmed their presence but they didn’t show up due to which the multi-Parties conference had to be converted in a news conference,” Sattar informed reporters. The sad aspect, Farooq Sattar said, was that they knew about the decision of political parties through news channels, which is highly regrettable.
“We rejected the London but these political parties have endorsed the London,” Sattar said, adding for peace his party visited Haqqiqi office after 25 years whereas the office of arch rival, the Pak Sarzameen Party, was also visited in order to invite them in conference,” Sattar added.
“Last year we were on the footpath outside Karachi Press Club. On August 22, 2016 we demonstrated our solidarity with Pakistan — its security, Constitution and state — and we made an announcement to this effect on August 23, 2016,” Sattar said The Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) and Mohajir Qaumi Movement – two contenders of the MQM-P in its race for grabbing Mohajir vote bank – on Monday accepted the Farooq Sattar-led party’s invitation for a All-parties’ conference to be held on August 22 — which MQM has termed its ‘Day of Deliverance’.
Earlier this week, MQM-P had decided to hold the conference to discuss “conspiracies against the solidarity of Pakistan, elimination of corruption and empowerment of local governments”.
Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf, Jamaat-i-Islami, Awami National Party, Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl, All Pakistan Muslim League and Pakistan Peoples Party had been invited to attend.
However, on Tuesday morning, almost all of these parties stated that they would not be attending the MPC. “Did the other political parties not appreciate our initiative? They could have attended the conference today and made it a success,” Sattar said.
