Islamabad:
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said on Tuesday he foresees a “stalemate” in the formation of a coalition government in Pakistan if someone is not willing to give in. end soon.
Bilawal's comments came a day after the latest round of talks between top leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan People's Party (PPP) ended inconclusively on Monday as both sides failed to reach a consensus on power-sharing . formula to form a coalition government at the center after a fractured verdict in the February 8 elections.
The PPP is reportedly seeking key constitutional positions of President, Senate Chairman and National Assembly Speaker for its support to former Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's PML-N.
Speaking to reporters outside the Supreme Court, Bilawal said the message from the people was that no single party could rule the country and they should all work together.
“In a democracy you call this process a compromise, which means there will be give and take when political parties form an alliance,” the 35-year-old former foreign minister said.
The PPP chairman said that after the polls, all political stakeholders should form a consensus on the way forward to save the democratic and parliamentary system in Pakistan.
“The only way out of this situation is through dialogue and compromise,” he told Dawn News.
When asked to comment on the PPP's talks with the PML-N, he noted that more than ten days had passed since the general election, while questions were also raised over its legitimacy.
He said the PTI was technically the “biggest”. [party]but had said he would not talk to anyone. He said that on the other side was the PML-N and the PPP had decided that he would talk to those who came to them.
“But if I have to give a voice to the PML-N, I will do it on my terms… I will not give it to the N League,” he asserted.
Bilawal attributed the delay in forming the government to the “non-seriousness of the dialogue committee”. He said this delay did not harm him, but it did damage the country's democracy.
“The sooner this is resolved, it would be better for stability and the new government,” he said. Bilawal said the PPP was in “no hurry” and was adamant in its position, adding that it would not change.
“If someone else wants to change their position, there can be progress. If he or she is not willing to change that, I foresee a dangerous stalemate,” Bilawal said, adding that this would not benefit democracy, the economy or political stability.
The general election has been controversial, with several serious allegations of widespread manipulation to change the results. More than eleven days after the vote, there is still no clarity about which party would form the government at the Centre.
Although independent candidates backed by jailed former Prime Minister Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf have won the maximum number of seats in parliament, PML-N and PPP have announced that they will form a coalition government after elections result in a hung parliament.
However, despite several rounds of talks, a decision on PPP's inclusion in the cabinet remained elusive.
Sources said PPP chairman Bilawal Zardari-Bhutto played smart and tried to take PML-N to a point where it backed out from forming a coalition government and then launched itself as prime minister and formed a government with the support of independents of the captured former Prime Minister. Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, who are now members of the Sunni Ittehad Council.
However, it will not be easy for Bilawal as PTI has already rejected the opportunity to support the PPP.
To form a government, a party must win 133 seats out of 265 contested seats in the 266-member National Assembly.
Independent candidates – a majority backed by the PTI – won 93 seats in the National Assembly in the elections.
The PML-N won 75 seats, while the PPP came third with 54 seats. The Muttahida Qaumi Movement Pakistan (MQM-P) has also agreed to support them with their 17 seats.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by DailyExpertNews staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)