Pakistan People's Party's senior leadership and coalition partners on Thursday vowed support to Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, saying they would respond to the new challenges with political maturity and wisdom, in accordance with the Constitution.
PPP senior leadership and coalition partners made this commitment at two separate meetings held at the Presidency on Thursday. These meetings were held to consider the situation arising out of Supreme Court verdict in the contempt case against Prime Minister Gilani.
Spokesperson to the President, Senator Farhatullah Babar said that after careful deliberations the meeting decided to give a robust, considered and appropriate response to the new challenges with great political maturity and wisdom on the one hand and firmness on the other by employing all democratic and constitutional means available.
He said the meeting expressed concern over attempts to dismiss an elected government and an elected Prime Minister. He said the meeting expressed complete solidarity with the Prime Minister and declared that Yousaf Raza Gilani was the elected Prime Minister of the country and could be removed only in accordance with the procedure laid down in the Constitution for the removal of a Prime Minister.
The President's Spokesman said that after discussing Supreme Court's short order the meeting expressed dismay that "an elected Prime Minister had been sentenced for upholding the Constitution and supremacy of the Parliament." It also noted with disappointment that while no dictator had been punished for suspension and abrogation of the Constitution a democratically and unanimously elected Prime Minister had been sentenced for upholding the Constitution.
He said the meeting "congratulated" the Prime Minister for standing up with dignity, grace and courage for defending the Constitution and upholding the supremacy of the Constitution. Babar said the meeting placed on record its appreciation for the defence counsel Aitzaz Ahsan and his team for the spirited and competent defence of the Prime Minister in the Supreme Court.
It called upon the defence team to study the full order of the Court "as and when it becomes available" and give its considered opinion on whether and when to file an appeal against the verdict. The meeting appreciated and thanked the allied parties in the coalition government for showing solidarity with the Prime Minister and signalling the unity of political forces.
Babar said that earlier a meeting was also held with coalition partners. He said the meeting of the coalition partners congratulated the Prime Minister over his stance in defending the Constitution and expressed complete solidarity with the Prime Minister.
The President thanked the coalition partners for their support to strengthen the political system and standing behind the Prime Minister in upholding the Constitution. The President appreciated the stance of the coalition partners to uphold the rule of law instead of seeking political power.
The meeting of PPP senior leadership was attended among other by Makhdoom Amin Faheem, Nazar Muhammad Gondal, Rana M. Farooq Saeed Khan, Chaudhry Ahmed Mukhtar, Qamar Zaman Kaira, Senator A. Rehman Malik, Mir Hazar Khan Bijarani, Raja Perviaz Ashraf, Mian Manzoor Ahmad Wattoo, Senator Farooq H. Naek, Syed Khursheed Shah, Makhdoom Shahab-ud-Din, Syed Naveed Qamar, Senator Jahangir Badar, Senator Faisal Raza Abidi, Barrister Aitzaz Ahsan, Ms Rukhsana Bangash, Ms Fouzia Wahab, Mehreen Anwar Raja, Fouzia Habib and Spokesperson Senator Farhatullah Babar.
The meeting of PPP and its coalition partners was attended by Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, Senator Afrasiab Khattak, Dr Farooq Sattar, Babar Ghouri, Senator Mir Israrullah Zehri, Haji Khuda Baksh Rajar, Munir Khan Orakzai, Senator Abbas Khan Afridi, Syed Khurshid Shah, Raja Pervaiz Ashraf, Syed Naveed Qamar and Spokesperson to the President Senator Farhatullah Babar.