- Continuous delay in appointment of the office-bearers raises eyebrows
ISLAMABAD: Continuous delay in the formal formation of Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) — an alliance of religio-political parties— raised many questions, as the MMA still has to finalise its president and secretary general, it emerged on Saturday.
In December last year, the alliance was revived after religious political parties which included Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F), Senator Sirajul Haq of the Jamaat-i- Islami (JI), Sajid Mir of Jamiat Ahle Hadith (JAH), Allama Sajid Naqvi of Tehreek-i-Islami (TI) and Shah Ovais Noorani of Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan (JUP) made an religious alliance which was dysfunction after 2008.
Since its revival in December 2017, the MMA has failed to elect the president and general secretary despite meeting thrice in Lahore, Islamabad, and Karachi.
According to the sources, the main reason of the delay was the alliance of the JUI-F with the Pakistan Muslim League PML-N (PML-N) in Centre and JI which is a coalition partner of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
Sources said that both the key parties still intact with their respective coalition partners and both were facing criticism in the meeting and were repeatedly asked to dissociate themselves.
In the last meeting on March 3, in which things had to be finalised, JUI-F chief left the huddle at the eleventh hour for Senate elections, which irked the parties, especially the JUP chief, who also recorded his protest, the source said.
“Both parties, the JUI-F and JI, have to disassociate themselves with their respective alliance, otherwise, the formal formation of MMA will remain in jeopardy, MMA member told Pakistan Today on condition of anonymity.
JUP chief Shah Ovais Noorani confirmed to Pakistan Today that due to the Senate elections on March 3 Fazl had left the meeting and things could not be finalised. He said that in the next meeting the parties will reach a final decision regarding the future of the MMA.
“This is understood that both parties will have to say goodbye to their allies for MMA to functional properly,” he added.
Meanwhile, JUI-F chief Fazl said that the MMA will be restored very soon. He said: “We are working on the restoration of the MMA and there are some technical issues in this regard. However, these issues will be resolved in the next few days and the alliance would be restored soon,” he disclosed.
On March 15, JI chief Siralul Haq claimed that the MMA on March 21 will finalise its president and other office bearers. He claimed that the meeting will be held in Karachi in which a final decision will be taken and after that the MMA will announce the schedule of public gathering across the country in a bid to woo voters for upcoming polls.
The MMA was formed in 2002. Late Shah Ahmed Noorani of the JUP was its first president while late Qazi Hussain Ahmed of the JI was its secretary general.
