By KUNA,
Islamabad : Acting US Special Representative for Afghanistan and Pakistan Frank Ruggiero will arrive here Thursday in an attempt to help the beleaguered government of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), which had to face another blow with the killing of Punjab Governor Salman Taseer.
According to the US embassy, the envoy is arriving on a two-day visit to meet with government officials.
Ruggiero, said the embassy statement, will also meet representatives of civil society and the media.
He will reaffirm that the United States remains committed to the people of Pakistan and will continue to support Pakistan’s efforts to ensure greater peace, security, and stability in the region now and in the future, said the US embassy in the statement.
The visit of US envoy is of particular importance as it is coming as an Afghan Peace Council delegation is visiting Islamabad to seek regional support for reconciliation process with Taliban.
The PPP government has plunged into deep political crisis, threatening another phase of political instability in Pakistan.
The PPP Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani had been struggling to save his government’s majority in the National Assembly when a religious fanatic and official security guard of Elite Force gunned down his party’s Punjab Province Governor Salman Taseer in Islamabad.
PPP lost majority in the Lower House of the Parliament after religious group Jamait-e-Islami (JI) quit the fragile coalition for the sacking of its two federal ministers by the Prime Minister.
Official sources told KUNA that the visiting US envoy is likely to hold meetings with leaders of opposition parties and may try to gather support for the PPP government.
All opposition parties have refused to join the PPP.
The PPP popularity has plunged to the lowest level since 2008 as the killing of Governor Taseer has largely divided the nation between those supporting killer Mumtaz Qadri and those liberals strongly condemning it.
Political analysts here are of the view that Benazir Bhutto’s killing brought PPP into power by winning masses support, but it is very unlikely that Taseer’s killing will save the government in any way.
Mayed Ali, a leading local analysts Thursday warned that the PPP’s move to cash in on Salmaan Taseer’s coffin politically could have dire consequences for the party, in Punjab in particular and nationwide in general.
The timing of Salmaan Taseer’s death is crucial in view of the prevalent political crisis in the country, he opined.