PML-F could have withdrawn its opposition to the PPP after President Zardari picked up Makhdoom Ahmed Mehmood as Governor Punjab by replacing Sardar Latif Khosa, sources said, but instead they showed the door to Makhdoom. PML-F has recently surfaced as a potential game-changer following its mammoth public rally against Sindh Local government ordinance. Sources within the PPP revealed that after the major show in Hyderabad along with other Sindhi nationalist parties followed by the scheduled meeting of PML-F chief Pir Pagara Sibghatullah Shah Rashidi with Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif in Raiwind, the PPP's central leadership is deeply concerned.
The President has also reportedly informed his party loyalists that he has agreed to a seat to seat adjustment with the MQM and therefore no PPP candidate would be fielded in constituencies where the MQM won in 2008 elections. This may anger quite a few PPP loyalists and they may opt to join the PML (F). Those close to the President maintain that this does not worry the President as he is not focused on any one who cannot retain his seat.
After the recent public rallies PML-F has emerged as a popular political force and may provide the PPP a run for its money. In addition the expected alliance of the PML-F with the nationalist parties to jointly contest the upcoming general elections against PPP may change the political chessboard of Sindh. "The Pir sahib is still reluctant to meet President Asif Ali Zardari despite several attempts made by former prime minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani, who happens to be his relative...but it is no use of crying over spilt milk," sources said.
PML-F secretary-general, Imtiaz Sheikh, who is also spokesman of the party, categorically said that his party had no intention to form a coalition with the PPP, terming it (PPP) untrustworthy. "PML-F has emerged as an alternate political force in Sindh and people have full confidence in its leadership... we will not disappoint our people," he maintained.
The PPP had lost its credibility among the people of Sindh, he said, adding that we could not take any further risk of going along with the party, as its provincial leadership is completely unaware of reconciliatory politics. Imtiaz Sheikh said that earlier President Asif Ali Zardari had shown willingness to meet Pir Pagara but it could not take place because of some unspecified reasons. "President Zardari had expressed his desire to meet Pir sahib some days ago but at the moment, there is complete silence from their (PPP) side regarding meeting between the two leaders," he added.
About Pir Pagara's expected meeting with PML-N chief Mian Nawaz Sharif, he said that they will shortly visit Raiwind to chalk out future course of action on the issues that also include the upcoming general elections. The interesting change, according to analysts, will be PPP's inability to use the all powerful Sindh card if PML-F emerges as a parallel political force with the backing of Sindhi nationalists. They said that the PPP will lose majority in Sindh, hence its monopoly will automatically come to an end if PML-F manages to strengthen itself as an alternate political force in the province. Meanwhile, PPP sources said that the party leadership is also contemplating wooing the jiyalas who were largely ignored following tragic assassination of Benazir Bhutto.
It would be a challenging task to woo the estranged jiyalas yet nobody can deny that the majority of the people may still vote for PPP in spite of its poor performance in government and the change in its leadership from the Bhutto to the Zardari clan. "Ignoring the jiyalas or not treating them the way they deserve, was indeed, a big mistake on the part of the leadership," a PPP parliamentarian regretted.