Islamabad : Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), an ally of the PTI government, skipped a luncheon hosted by Prime Minister Imran Khan in the honor of his allies to discuss some “crucial national issues”.
Earlier the PML-Q has accepted the invitation and later its leaders decided to not attend the luncheon.
Allies parties leaders expressed their anger over the government failure to meet its promises it made with its coalition partners. However, Prime Minister Imran Khan has once again assured them that the government will deliver according to its promises.
PMLQ leader and federal minister Tariq Bashir Cheema when asked said that it was his party’s decision to not go to the luncheon, saying that the party’s reservations have not been addressed by the PTI.”When PML-Q is not important for Imran Khan, what is the point for the party to attend the luncheon?” Cheema is reported to have said.
“Whenever the government needed [us], we voted for them more than the government’s [own] people,” he said. Cheema also claimed that the ministers who had come to give them the invitation had also acknowledged that the PML-Q was not being treated fairly.
According to details, the Prime Minister was expected to discuss the current political situation with his allies at the luncheon he hosted at Prime Minister Office on Thursday.
The meeting was attended by chief ministers Punjab,KP and Balochistan and top government officials and lawmakers from the coalition partners.
Sources suggested that PM Imran will discuss some “crucial national issues” with his allies. He will also speak about the Opposition’s narrative against the government as well as the public gatherings of the Pakistan Democratic Movement.
Federal Minister Dr Fahmida Mirza, Asad Umar and Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui addressed the luncheon. The allies expressed their reservations over not releasing development funds to allies leaders. MQM demanded delivery of its promises with Karachi.
PML-Q leader Tariq Bashir Cheema said that his party has reservations on different issues but Prime Minister Imran Khan has never included PML-Q in the consultation process despite his weekly visits to Lahore.
He said that PML-Q was not taken into confidence on Local Bodies Act and matters related to farmers. There is no use in attending the lunch if PML-Q is not important for the prime minister, he added.
The invitations for the lunch had been sent to the leaders of political allies in the government. PM Imran will take the allies into confidence on the prevailing political situation in the country, sources said.
The PM will also consult allied on opposition’s narrative and a strategy to deal with the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM).
Earlier, PML-Q has rejected the government’s decision to fix the minimum support price of wheat at Rs1600 per maund.
A statement issued by Speaker Punjab Assembly Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi on the issue said that raising the support price of wheat by only Rs200 is a joke with the farmers. He demanded the government to fix minimum price of wheat at Rs2,000 per maund.
He said that if the farmers do not get relief, they will be forced to grow other crops instead of wheat, which could lead to a severe wheat crisis in the country.
From MQM-P, Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui, Syed Aminul Haq, and Kishwar Zehra attended the luncheon. On the other hand, the Grand Democratic Alliance delegation led by Dr Fahmida Mirza. Members from the Balochistan Awami Party and the Awami Muslim League were also present in the luncheon.
