Economic reforms agenda: PML-N not to hold further consultations with PPP

Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) has decided not to hold another meeting with Pakistani People's Party (PPP) team for implementation of its economic reforms agenda, party sources told Business Recorder on Tuesday.
They said the deadline given by PML-N Chief, Mohammad Nawaz Sharif expires on February 23 and there is no sign that the government would take necessary steps to control price hike, electricity and gas shortages and lawlessness and cut non-development expenses by 30 percent.
They further said that Nawaz has already expressed dissatisfaction over the progress on the economic revival agenda and told his party's delegation, headed by Senator Ishaq Dar, to take a firm stand at the ninth round of talks held on 8th February 2011.
Though in the last meeting, the two parties reached an understanding to pursue recovery of 100 largest loans written off by each bank since 1971, PML-N senior leaders had expressed doubts about government's real intentions. They said that in these circumstances, the party is ready to 'go all-out' against the government and play a real opposition's role after the expiry of the aforementioned deadline.
PML-N sources said that President Asif Ali Zardari's proposal to hold an all parties roundtable conference has fizzled out since instead of finding a solution to the political and economic problems of the nation, he just 'wanted to buy more time to remain in power'.
Meanwhile, the 23-member runaway group of PML-Q Members Provincial Assembly, known as "unification group" has been allotted separate seats at Punjab Assembly, paving way for expulsion of PPP from the coalition government led by Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif. The group has already declared that it would support Shahbaz's government after the expulsion of PPP from the provincial government.