All parties should participate in elections: Dr. Amjad
By Adnan Rafique

ISLAMABAD—The caretaker Minister for Inter-Provincial Coordination Dr. Mohammad Amjad has said that all the political parties should participate in the upcoming elections. “The country is passing through a critical juncture and those talking about boycott of the polls are neither well wishers of the country nor the people,” he told in an exclusive interview here on Wednesday.
The minister said that continuation of political process was a must for strengthening of democracy and development of the country adding that “we are passing through a transitional stage and any wrong step or decision at this time can damage the political process. The minister said that the politics of agitation and confrontation has damaged the country and democratic process to a great extent. He said after doffing off the uniform by the President there was no justification with the opposition parties to boycott the elections.
Dr. Mohammad Amjad said that the time has come to forget all the past differences and work together for development of the motherland and strengthening of democracy. To a question about the role of Inter-Provincial Coordination ministry, he said that the ministry was established to promote provincial harmony and take practical steps for resolving various issues among the federating units.
He said that after thorough deliberations on the issue of provincial autonomy with representatives of all the political parties, concrete steps should be taken to meet the aspirations of the provinces.
“The matter does not belong to the present government alone but it is a national issue and every one has the responsibility to work for securing national interests,” he said. Dr. Amjad said there were provisions in 1973 Constitution on provincial autonomy. “But unfortunately the previous regimes never paid any heed to the vital issue and made no serious efforts for its resolution,” he added.
The Ministry of Inter-Provincial Coordination during the last one year did a lot of work on the vital issue of provincial autonomy and held meetings with all the political parties to resolve the issue to some extent but the bill could not be tabled before the National Assembly due to an uncertain situation in the country, he said.