Pakistan: Shazia Marri warns federal govt of collapse if PPP pulls out support

Islamabad [Pakistan], January 6 (ANI): Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) leader Shazia Marri has said that the party might withdraw its support from the federal government due to a lack of trust in important decisions, emphasising that the government will collapse if PPP pulls out support, The Express Tribune reported.
In a statement, Shazia Marri strongly reacted to the Maritime and Shipping Port Authority decision. She said that Pakistan's federal government is consistently taking decisions without holding discussions with the PPP, including the formation of the Pakistan Maritime and Shipping Port Authority.
She said that both the PPP and the Sindh government were kept in the dark regarding the formation of the authority. She reiterated that the government will remain in power until PPP continues its support. However, she noted that the government will collapse if the PPP withdraws support, according to The Express Tribune report.
Shazia Marri noted that the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) might not realize this and added that the PPP had been calling for the convening of the National Interest Council meeting for a long time. However, it has not been called in eleven months.
PPP leader pointed out the ongoing violation of the constitution by Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who is legally bound to convene the Council of Common Interests every three months.
She called for bringing up the matter of the formation of the Maritime and Shipping Port Authority to the Council of Common Interests, stressing that decisions on key national issues should not be made without discussions with the allies and provinces, as per the report.
PPP spokesperson termed the federal government's actions incomprehensible and added that they could cause deeper divisions. She called for governing the country by constitutional and legal principles, with consultations with allies and provinces before making decisions on maritime issues and port authority recommendations.
Earlier, Punjab's Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan said the alliance of the PML-N and the PPP has damaged the latter in Punjab. He predicted that it was the PML-N's turn to bear the brunt of the alliance, The Express Tribune reported.
Khan, who belongs to the PPP, assumed office after PML-N and PPP had a power-sharing deal following the February 8 general elections.
As per the agreement, the PPP opted for the constitutional positions of the president, governorship of two provinces - Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Senate chairmanship in return for supporting the PML-N-led federal government.
Before the emergence of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), the PPP and PML-N were arch rivals and the two parties had a history of turf war in Punjab which the PML-N had snatched from the PPP. (ANI)