In an apparent reference to former prime minister and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Wednesday said that the general elections have been put on hold because of just one person.
“The tenure of [coalition] government of the last 16 months taught us that Pakistan cannot be run from London,” he said while addressing a ceremony related to the 16th anniversary of Karsaz tragedy in Karachi.
“We hope that his [Nawaz’s] return [to the country] would be big, and also that ECP would soon announce the election schedule.”
The PPP chairman expressed the urgent need for all political parties to support the demand for the immediate announcement of the election schedule by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), saying that Pakistan can be brought back on the path of progress only via elections.
“Our former ally would also agree that delay in elections is not vote ki izzat (respect of vote) but vote ki beizzati (disrespect of vote),” Bilawal said in reference to the popular slogan of PML-N.
“We have to leave politics of abuses and divide behind. We need new leadership… a leadership which is not stuck in the past but thinks about the future. We don’t want 90s’ Pakistan or 2017’s Pakistan. We want today’s Pakistan… Pakistan of 2023… a modern Pakistan.”
Highlighting the current state of Pakistan, he lamented that the country was not on the right path at the moment and the economy was in tatters. “The democracy is in shambles. We will have to conduct elections and give space to democracy,” he added.
Recalling the achievements of his party during their previous tenure, PPP chairman stated, “From 2008 to 2013, we had laid a path. We have shown that there can be unity. We introduced revolutionary programmes such as the Benazir Income Support Programme.”
“We have to bury the politics of division and revive the politics of unity. Only then Pakistan will attain stability. We can only fight our issues if we have stability… we need political stability,” he added.
On the economic front, he emphasised that the country would have to make policies for the betterment of the people. “When people are empowered, the economy of the country also benefits. During all tenures of PPP, our policies were people-friendly.”
Bilawal countered the perception that the PPP is not business-friendly, citing the Thar Coal project as an example of their commitment to the country’s development. “Give me one such example which can match Thar Coal project throughout the country,” he challenged.
Referring to the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), he said that former president Asif Ali Zardari laid the foundation of the mega project. “He was criticised for visiting China each month. The same people who were criticising were now taking credit for CPEC.”
Bilawal promised that, if elected, his party would initiate another economic corridor to create job opportunities. He stressed Pakistan’s vulnerability to climate change and the necessity to improve the country’s infrastructure through investment.
In his concluding remarks, Bilawal echoed the aspirations of Pakistan’s youth, saying, “We reject politics of revenge. We reject old and conservative politics. We want a modern Pakistan. We want to see opportunities in Pakistan as well as the entire globe.”
