Well ahead of the general election, the merger of the Pakistan Muslim League-N (PML-N) and the Sindh National Front (SNF) appears to be in trouble and SNF chief Mumtaz Bhutto has replaced PML-N’s flag with that of SNF on his vehicle. In order to set up a strong alliance against the PPP, the PML-N had succeeded in roping in the SNF on May 9 when Mumtaz Bhutto formally announced the merger of his party with the PML-N. Sources said before the merger, the SNF had 26-member executive committee and 100-member central committee and the leadership of PML-N had committed to give important positions to the leaders of SNF, including Mumtaz Bhutto. “But no major leader of the SNF got any position even after three months since the merger,” the sources said. They said before the holy month of Ramadan, Mumtaz Bhutto met Nawaz Sharif in Islamabad and complained about the situation, after which the central leadership of the PML-N announced 51 joint secretaries and 36 vice presidents in Sindh in which SNF leaders were given positions. “The workers of SNF considered the positions as a joke, after which the central and regional leaders of the SNF started demanding restoration of the SNF,” Sources stated. Mumtaz Bhutto and other leaders of Sindh have now reduced contacts with nationalist leaders of interior Sindh. PML-N Sindh leader Saleem Zia said Mumtaz Bhutto had not demanded any position in the party so far, while SNF workers had been given some positions. He claimed that Mumtaz Bhutto was standing by the PML-N and would continue to do so.
