President Pervez Musharraf's nod finally led to the appointment of Kamil Ali Agha as the leader of opposition in the Senate by the Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q). “The decision was taken at an undeclared meeting of top PML-Q leaders with the president four days back,” a senior party stalwart, who attended the unreported session, told this correspondent. Among others present at the deliberations were PML-Q President Chaudhry Shujaat Hussain, Mohammad Ali Durrani, Wasim Sajjad, Lt. Gen. (retd) Javed Ashraf Qazi, Anwar Bhinder and Agha. The only qualification, if it can be so called, that earned Agha the prestigious nomination was that he was an “aggressive” and “attacking” person, who would do well for the party in this position, the PML-Q leader said. Others considered in the meeting for the office were found too docile and independent minded who would not be belligerent in the new parliamentary arrangement when the PML-Q is on the defensive in the Senate as well as the National Assembly. Wasim Sajjad, who had been the longest serving chairman of the Senate and who was leader of the House for five years (2002-2007), was not found fit for the job because he has no experience of working in the opposition since his entry in the Upper House of Parliament way back in 1985. PML-Q secretary general Mushahid Hussain was also considered for the slot, but was not approved because he was found much independent minded and has a track record of saying what is right and what is wrong regardless of what Musharraf or the PML-Q feels. The name of third man, elderly Anwar Bhinder, was also cropped up, but was abandoned because of his age although his parliamentary experience surpassed all others. He too had never been exceedingly partisan. __
