KARACHI: In a major development, 13 members of provincial assembly from Muttahida Qaumi Movement are joining Sindh Cabinet in a day or two. This development came after Pakistan Peoples Party and MQM successfully finalised a power-sharing deal following a series of negotiations on formation of government in Sindh and the Center.

PPP Parliamentary Leader in Sindh Assembly, Pir Mazharul Haq and MQM Coordination Committee Deputy Convenor Dr Farooq Sattar briefed journalists about the salient features of negotiations at a joint press conference at Chief Ministers House on Wednesday.

As per the power-sharing formula disclosed by Pir Mazhar, Muttahida Qaumi Movement would get 13 ministries including Health, Industries and Commerce, Information Technology, Environment and Alternate Energy, Sports, Youth Affairs, Rural Development, Public Health Engineering, Auqaf, Bureau of Supply and Prices and Human Rights besides one advisor and one special assistant. Remaining two ministers and advisor have not been assigned any portfolio.

As regards the names of ministers, Pir Mazhar said that these will be finalised by MQM at their end. Dr Farooq said the MQM ministers would take oath in a day or two. To a query about the Sindh Governor, Dr Sattar said anyone could surmise his (governors) future in light of prevailing spirit behind the MQM-PPP relations, which ultimately led to successful reconciliation talks on Monday night at Governor House.

Provincial Home Minister Zulfiqar Mirza, who played a key role in the PPP-MQM talks, however, said: “The governor is now ours, no matter whoever he previously belonged to.” The PPP leader while terming the removal of misgivings essential for cohesion said reconciliation with MQM was the wish of Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. To a query on the nature of MQM-PML-Q future relationship, Dr Farooq said Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain had already welcomed the PPP-MQM reconciliation process during his recent visit to the party headquarters 90.

To a question that like MQM why the PPP leadership had not taken its workers into confidence on reconciliation process with the former, Mazhar said the PPP had its own democratic mechanism and the party had authorised its Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari for making all the decisions.

Leaders from the two sides expressed the hope that the new political alliance would best serve the poverty-stricken people of Sindh and would now focus on the power-sharing process in federal government.

With the inclusion of the 13 MQM MPAs, the number of Sindh Cabinet members will reach 34. In Sindh Assembly, 51 MQM MPAs would shift to the treasury benches leaving 19 members, nine from Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q), eight from Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F) and two from National Peoples Party (NPP), on the opposition benches.

The treasury side in Sindh Assembly will have 142 members in total viz 89 from PPP, 51 from MQM and two from the Awami National Party. Sindh Information Minister Shazia Mari, MPA Murad Ali Shah, former federal ports and shipping minister Babar Ghauri and other PPP and MQM leaders were also present on the occasion. Business Recorder, 2008

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