The Prime Minister also held a meeting with the leaders of other political parties who were also invited to the dinner. Earlier, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif hosted a luncheon in honour of political parties at Prime Minister's House to discuss the nomination of candidate for the office of Chairman and Deputy Chairman Senate.
Speaking at the luncheon, Nawaz Sharif said that he has initiated the process of broad based consultation for developing a consensus on national issues. The Prime Minister said that PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari held a consultative meeting with political parties on Monday to nominate a consensus candidate but regretted that the ruling party was not invited to that meeting. It would have been better if ruling party was also invited to participate in the process. As political parties have reached a consensus on the name of Raza Rabbani for the office of Chairman Senate, his party has decided to endorse his name to promote the culture of consensus.
The Prime Minister added that he had sent a message to former President Asif Ali Zardari with respect to the process of mutual consultations on the issue of the election of the Chairman and deputy chairman but did not receive any response from him. Nawaz Sharif said that policy of consensus has been very healthy for democracy. He said this consultative process will be helpful in forging unity among the political leadership to resolve the issues. He hoped that today's meeting will also be helpful to reach consensus candidates for the election of Chairman and Deputy Chairman Senate. The Prime Minister said the government along with other political parties made serious and successful efforts to overcome horse-trading. The leaders of PPP, ANP, MQM, JUI, PKMP and PNP attended the meeting.
Raza Rabbani said that Senate Deputy Chairman must be nominated from Balochistan. Rabbani, who also held a meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, said that he would strive to meet the expectations of every party without succumbing to any pressure. He said that the decision for the Deputy Chairman of the Senate must be taken by the political parties.
Muttahida Quami Movement (MQM) appreciated former President Asif Ali Zardari's decision to nominate Raza Rabbani for the chairmanship, saying that his decision would strengthen democracy. Parliamentarians from FATA told media persons that the government has promised to take back the ordinance promulgated by the President some hours prior to Senate elections to change the producer of the election of FATA senators.
ANP leader Asfandyar Wali expressed confidence in Raza Rabbani's name for Chairman Senate, saying that Raza Rabbani has played an unforgettable role for democracy, adding that he is trying to elect Chairman and Deputy Chairman Senate with mutual consensus. While talking to media after meeting with the Prime Minister, he said that there can be no better candidate than Rabbani for the Senate chairmanship. Asfandyar Wali, while terming politics as a game of probabilities, said that politicians must not lose hope. He further said that Deputy Chairman must be from Balochistan.