PPP leader Shazia Marri stated on Saturday that if the coalition government reneges on its commitments, the party will not only boycott the upcoming budget but also take a “more serious step.”
Tensions between the PPP and the PML-N-led coalition government have been escalating for months due to unfulfilled promises. A meeting in December between Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and President Asif Ali Zardari failed to resolve the issues, with PPP Senator Saleem Mandviwalla later alleging that the Prime Minister’s office ignored directives from the Presidency.
In an attempt to ease tensions, PML-N leaders met with PPP representatives at the Governor House on Saturday, assuring them they would not be treated as outsiders in Punjab.
During a recent appearance on private news channel, Shazia Marri emphasized that if the government failed to fulfill its commitments concerning the Public Sector Development Programme (PSDP), the PPP would boycott the budget and consider taking a more serious action, though she did not specify what that would be.
Marri remarked that the country could not afford such a confrontation and that the government should have carefully considered its decisions. She pointed out that the PPP was not acting out of compulsion but out of political maturity and wisdom, adding, “I think this is a very delicate government, and I don’t think there has ever been a government as weak as this one.”
She further criticized the government for not realizing the importance of the PPP’s support in the current political climate.
In January, the PPP had urged the federal government to hold local government elections in Punjab and Islamabad as per the coalition’s agreement. The PPP has also voiced concerns over the controversial canal projects in Punjab’s Cholistan area and has called for the immediate convening of the Council of Common Interests (CCI), where the canal issue has been pending for 11 months.
