ISLAMABAD: The opposition parties have nominated senior PPP leader Raza Rabbani as their joint candidate for the office of chairman Senate.
ANP President Asfandyar Wali Khan, a close ally of former president Asif Ali Zardari, announced Rabbani’s nomination in the presence of representatives of all opposition parties at the end of a four-hour long meeting at Zardari House.
The opposition did not name its candidate for for the office of deputy chairman. It is believed the deputy chairman candidate might be picked from a smaller party. The PML-Q leader Kamil Ali Agha told reporters that they had decided to nominate someone from Balochistan for the post.
Rabbani will be the joint candidate of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Awami National Party (ANP) and Balochistan National Party-Awami (BNP-A).
Asfandyar Wali, talking to reporters, claimed that three sitting Fata senators were also part of the opposition alliance whereas one Fata senator belonged to the JUI-F.
Maulana Fazlur Rehman, the JUI-F chief, attended the meeting for some time, but he was not present at the time of the announcement, indicating that the Maulana still wanted to keep his options open as he was scheduled to have a meeting with Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.