Party believes that all decisions must be taken by parliament, says FM Bilawal in a tweet
ISLAMABAD
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has decided to reach out to its allied parties to build a consensus on way forward amid talks with TTP. According to details, a high-level meeting was held at Zardari House here under the chairmanship party’s co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari and Chairman Bilawal Bhutto, who is also the foreign minister. Senior party leaders — Yousuf Raza Gilani, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Murad Ali Shah, Sherry Rehman, Khursheed Shah, Faryal Talpur, Nayyer Bukhari, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Chaudhry Manzoor, Nadeem Afzal Chan, Akhunzada Chattan, Nisar Khuhro and others — attended the meeting.
In a statement issued after the meeting, the PPP said that the party had reiterated that all decisions must be taken by the parliament, and thus, the parliament must be taken on board. Taking to Twitter, Bilawal Bhutto said that PPP held a high-level meeting to discuss the issue of terrorism, particularly in light of recent developments in Afghanistan, with the TTA (Tehreek-i-Taliban Afghanistan) & TTP.
“PPP believes that all decisions must be taken by parliament. Will be reaching out to allied parties to create consensus on the way forward,” the foreign minister wrote on Twitter. Last month, the government and the TTP had agreed to extend a ceasefire indefinitely and continue negotiations to find an end to the nearly two decades of militancy.
A statement issued by Secretary General Farhatullah Babar said that the meeting reiterated the Party position that all decisions must be taken by the parliament and thus the parliament must be taken on board. The party also decided to reach out to allied parties to create consensus on the way forward.
A senior PPP leader, on the condition of anonymity, told the publication that there appeared to be wheels within wheels in the state apparatus and that it was extremely risky for national security to conduct such a serious exercise without informing the parliament, and political parties, and other stakeholders. Following this, the PPP’s high-level huddle decided to reach out to allied parties to create consensus on the way forward — during the “hybrid meeting” chaired by PPP Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari, with PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari in attendance via video link.
