Report in The Nation, Dec 3, 2023
QUETTA – Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said Saturday that if, God forbid, either the PML-N or the PTI comes to power as a result of February 8 general elections, they will destroy the country and the people through their politics of revenge.
The PPP leader went on to say that it is not possible to run a similar campaign in 2024 as in the 2018 elections that “this individual is an angel, while everyone else is rubbish.” He said that instead of the politics of conflict, we should go towards reconciliation and decisions should be made by consensus. The PPP chairman while addressing a press conference in Quetta also said that his party would give everyone a “best surprise” in the February 8 elections adding that the people of Balochistan had shown support for PPP by participating in party’s foundation day rally on November 30. “PPP and its leaders know how to contest and win elections,” he added.
Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that whether it is Pakistan or the world, the establishment is a reality. He said that as a young politician, he wants to shift the politics of confrontation in the country to the politics of consensus, adding that decisions should be made by consensus among all political parties and institutions. “Now it is not possible to do the same as it was done in the 2018 election, when the whole of Pakistan was being told that this is (Imran) Khan, this is your savior, you have to support him, (because) all the rest (parties) are rubbish,” he said, adding that we want the institutions to work within their own scope.
Chairman PPP termed the record inflation, unemployment and poverty in the country as the main problems of the country and said that if these problems are to be solved, PPP government will have to be formed, and added: “PPP is the only party that can take the entire federation, all institutions, all political parties, classes, all language speakers and regions together.” In response to a question raised by a journalist regarding Nawaz Sharif, Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the PML-N supremo should contest the elections based on his ideology rather than the administration.
“Mian Sahib, respect the vote, don’t disrespect the vote,” he advised former premier. Responding to a question about the PML-N leadership’s announcements to roll back the 18th Constitutional Amendment, the PPP Chairman said that such thinking is dangerous for the country and the federation. “Those who want to abolish the 18th Amendment, in fact, want to rob the resources of Balochistan, Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. They want to cut public health and education budgets and send them to Islamabad,” he added. He furtherd that currently there are 17 ministries in Islamabad, which should be in the provinces and not in the Centre, adding that the annual budget of said ministries is over 100 billion rupees, which is wasted.
“If the PPP government is formed, then the devolution process will be completed. I will close those federal ministries and spend that 100 billion rupees on my people,” he announced. Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, in response to question, said that some people have a misconception that the political winds are in their favour, adding that the Raiwind is attempting (unsuccessfully) to change the direction of the winds in its favor. He said that those who were pelted with tomatoes and eggs in Lahore are worried about the situation in Punjab, not Sindh. “We are trying to be the “Ladlas” of the public. We believe that the people make the direction of the winds, when the people make a decision, then everyone has to accept the people’s mandate,” he contended.
Talking about the issue of Afghan citizens, the PPP Chairman said that it is a complex matter, and advised the caretakers that instead of being sentimental, the government should have consulted all relevant stakeholders, including the host communities.
https://www.nation.com.pk/E-Paper/lahore/2023-12-03/page-1/detail-0
