Nawaz Pulls Out of Coalition

ISLAMABAD: The five-month old ruling coalition suffered a setback on Monday after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) pulled out of the four-party alliance in the Centre and announced it will sit on the opposition benches in National Assembly.

“After thorough deliberations and disappointments, I have today decided to part ways with the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP),” PML-N chief and two-time premier Nawaz Sharif told a crowded news conference at the Punjab House.

The split comes only a week after former president General (r) Pervez Musharraf resigned. He parried questions regarding his party’s strategy in Punjab, where it rules in alliance with the PPP.

Agreements: Nawaz blamed PPP Co-chairman Asif Zardari for the break-up. He criticised Zardari’s recent statement that agreements were not holy and could be modified as circumstances changed, and his decision to run for the September 6 presidential election.

He said the PPP co-chairman had breached all the agreements he had made in the recent months, including the Murree Declaration and the Islamabad Communiqué.

“There was tremendous pressure on me from the party to withdraw from the coalition but I was hopeful things would improve. I also wrote a letter to Zardari in July and requested him to honour all his commitments,” Nawaz said.

He also read out what he called an agreement Zardari had made with him on August 7, in which the PPP co-chairman promised the restoration of the sacked judiciary within 24 hours after Musharraf’s resignation and a consensus replacement for the retired general. He said the pact allowed the PPP to field its own presidential candidate only if the 17th Amendment was repealed and the president’s powers cut.

Presidential candidate: Nawaz announced former Supreme Court chief justice Saeeduz Zaman Siddiqui as his party’s presidential candidate.

“We had agreed to nominate a non-partisan candidate like the one who is sitting on my right hand,” he said, referring to Justice (r) Siddiqui amid clapping from his party members.

To a question, Nawaz said his party would not attempt to topple the PPP-led federal government and would play a “constructive role” in the opposition in line with the Charter of Democracy.

To another question, Nawaz said the National Assembly speaker should take note of the fact that the PML-N was now the largest opposition party and should name a new leader of the opposition from the PML-N.

Regarding his party’s contacts with the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid, he said his party would campaign for Justice Siddiqui and ask all democratic forces to vote for someone who respects the supremacy of the parliament and the rule of law.

Addressing the press conference, Siddiqui thanked Nawaz for naming him his party’s presidential candidate and said the PML-N was the only party that had taken a clear stance on the restoration of the sacked judiciary.

Awami National Party (ANP) senior leader Azam Hoti met Nawaz at Punjab House but failed to convince him to delay the decision.