KARACHI-Qaumi Awami Tehreek leader Ayaz Latif Palijo observed that pro-moting merit, developing culture of accountability for rulers, creat-ing awareness among the masses to ask questions from the law-makers about their performance and engaging in dialogue with mainstream parties and Urdu speaking and Punjabi brethren were some of the future steps which would likely help and benefit people of Sindh in a long way.
Speaking at a programme titled ‘Nationalist politics: present and future’ at the sixth Sindh Literature Festival at the Arts Council of Pakistan, moderated by Dr Ayub Shaikh, Palijo said culture of treating ‘others’ as traitor or issuing fat-was (edicts) should be ended and ‘space for dialogue’ be created. He suggested that sessions for Sindh’s economy, agriculture, livestock and wa-ter for Kohistan should be made part of the discourse in such festivals as uni-versities do not research on these subjects.
“Urdu speaking people are our brethren and we should engage in dialogue with them,” suggested Palijo, adding that any ‘adventure’ in Karachi should be avoided and any provocation for violence should be responded through ‘peace-ful ways’ as such peaceful coexistence would help Karachi to maintain peace and harmony for the next 50-100 years that was imperative for the develop-ment of Sindh. The QAT leader opined that personality clashes and ‘criminal factor’ had un-dermined the nationalist politics in Sindh whose undue advantage was being taken by the PPP. He called for bringing ‘transparency’ in funding of the par-ties.
Sindh Taraqqi-Pasand Party leader Dr Qadir Magsi said people should ask questions from the PPP leaders who have been ruling the Sindh province for years as to why 5,000 schools were closed in the province and why embank-ments of canals and natural waterways have been encroached.
He opined that social media and youths were a ray of hope. He called for get-ting rid of ‘feudal politics’ in Sindh. Magsi believed that ending of the controversial Kalabagh dam project, release of 5,000 people from ‘bonded labour’ and ending of ‘dual system’ of local gov-ernment in Sindh were some of the achievements of the nationalist politics.
Awami Tehreek leader Lal Jarwar said in the name of democracy, autocracy has been imposed in Sindh as a young girl, Sindhu Nawaz Ghanghro had been booked over terror charges for holding demonstration for people’s problems. “In a democratic era, we are not being allowed to do politics in a good way,” lamented Jarwar, asking what the PPP had given to the people during the last 15 years in Sindh. Jeay Sindh Qaumi Mahaz leader Illahi Bux Bikak said a ‘reign of terror’ has been established in Sindh as Majid Haidery, an educated man, had become a victim of ‘enforced disappearances’ in Karachi and is still missing after one month, but no one was raising voice for his release except relatives. Bikak said when they speak about such injustices, ‘people travelling in Vigo’ take the political workers away. Sindhiani Tehreek leader Ms Hoorunisa Palijo said despite problems like po-larisation, the women political activism in Sindh had not ‘frozen’ which was ev-ident from the fact that the women had joined the struggle for rights and re-cently held a large demonstration in Karachi against digital census etc.