At the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) rally in Larkana, the party’s eponymous chief said if he comes to power, the first thing he will do is to arrest Benazir Bhutto’s killers.
Rebuking the ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Nawaz said that four years have passed since Benazir’s murder but her own party’s government has failed to arrest the killers.
Instead, those who sped their vehicles away, leaving Benazir critically injured behind, are ministers and advisors today, Nawaz said.
Helping Sindh
Nawaz also hit out at the PPP for ‘ignoring’ its own bastion.
Even though PPP is in power in the province, it has done nothing to bring development to Sindh, the PML-N chief claimed.
Referring to the 2010 catastrophic floods, Nawaz said he suggested to the prime minister to grant Rs100,000 to each family – instead, all they got was Rs20,000.
This year, he added, the government has not only failed to drain rain water from several areas, it has only given Rs10,000 to the affected people.
In comparison, Nawaz said, the Punjab chief minister sent 860 trucks of relief goods worth Rs620 million.
Addressing the unemployed, Nawaz promised to grant interest-free loans to the skilled and educated youth to set up their own businesses, if he comes to power. He cited the yellow cab scheme and distribution of land amongst landless peasants as proof of his initiatives.
If the present government brings an end to prevalent poverty, lawlessness, unemployment and sky-rocketing inflation, there will be no need for me to come to power because I want to see Pakistan and its people flourish, Nawaz added.
After the public address, Nawaz left for Naudero, where he visited the house of Major Mujahid Mirani, one of the soldiers killed in the Nato strike on Salalah check post, and the Bhutto family mausoleum in Garhi Khuda Bux.
Party worker self-immolates
But all was not positive for the PML-N chief – and trouble came from his own party, not the PPP.
Protesting against the party leadership’s indifference, vice president PML-N Larkana chapter Nisar Shah resorted to self-immolation in front of the press club.
Shah was immediately rushed to Chandka Medical College and, according to doctors, received burn injuries on a quarter of his body.
According to sources, local PML-N leaders did not inform Nawaz about the incident.
Rally numbers
The PML-N had been courting nationalist parties to make the Larkana rally a ‘success,’ and, sources say, had received assurances of support.
On the rally day, however, the support did not materialise, and instead of an expected 100,000 people, about twenty to twenty-five thousand people were reportedly in attendance.
No political leaders from other parties announced joining PML-N either, as the party leadership had claimed earlier.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 11th, 2011.
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Each province of Pakistan needs each other's support.
Point me to the news where it says Punjab is not getting even two days of loadshedding. How many days of load shedding does Sindh face for transferring 'all the gas to Punjab'? Living in Karachi I would safely assume zero.
The only reason Sindh is going poorly is because Sindh's leaders are corrupt. Sindh may have the natural resources to grow, but not the will to grow. And about taking up jobs, if Sindh had the sort of human resource that Punjab/KP had, then surely you wouldn't loose jobs. Plus mostly the jobs locals land up in are in companies owned either by Muhajirs, Punjabi's or Parsis, without these groups you wouldnt have the jobs. Last but not the least, with no land to grow food for Sindh, I wouldnt like to say that Punjab can earn alot of money by just exporting all the surplus food, if you get my point.
@Aamer Khwaja: Dude, you claim that you aren't happy with the way IK is gathering the same old people. Three days ago, neither was I. But then I realized that in a country where people are so indifferent towards what happens in the political arena and where no one new is standing up to take charge, Imran has no other choice than to get those people to support him, and not oppose him. You have to realize that he can't win the elections on his own. If his party doesn't win he doesn't get to be prime minister and bring real change. In order to make his party sweep the elections he needs a good part of the same "old faces". Now I admit this is hard to watch, but can you blame him? If no one else is standing up to take part in the elections he has to make do with those who have been in politics for the past years. In the end this may prove to be quite a political masterstroke: Divide and conquer. It has proven extremely effective so far; just ask the British!
@Aamer Khawaja:
No such luck. Punjab is not willing to accept even two days loadshedding. Check the news before making any claims.
Punjab is slaughtering other provinces for its growth and if it didn’t certainly Sindh and Baluchistan have all the resources to do pretty well of themselves. Problem is, among other things, every day both Sindh and Baluchistan give so much gas to Punjab, much more than they use for themselves, running Punjab’s industry, households and transport. Selling all that gas to foreign buyers instead alone would earn Sindh and Baluchistan so much more revenue. Also Sindh’s revenue is shamelessly transferred to Punjab in various guises, be it the military spending (80-90% of military men are from Punjab), or federal government (read Punjab dominated) expenses. On top anyone unemployed in Punjab ends up straight in Karachi. This takes up local jobs in Sindh from locals plus the Punjab workers also send money back to Punjab causing its prosperity. In other words Punjab is eating Sindh away anyway it can, no wonder Sindh is doing so poorly.
How will you do this ?? First ensure justice for the murder of Governor Salman Taaseer.
@Ali: You are right. What his Brother's Govt. did for BB murder case in 4 years? Mr. NS Or i must say Mr. Mulla Jat. Please look your on back yard before spreading justice to around. If you are man enough then bring Ms. Aisha akad malik wife of Hamza sharif to media. And tell the truth about her status and give her justice her first.
There was a time when I had loved this guy, although I do not know why. But now he seems to have nothing to offer. He bases his thrust only on hate, revenge and vengeance. Big leaders are not made of this material. No. No they have big hearts, they are inclusive not exclusive. Even now he is only talking of sentiments not any substantive issues. He should know Pakistan is for all those living in Pakistan and similarly he should appeal to all Pakistanis not a few if he aspires to be the leader of all of Pakistan not just a small areas that is shrinking by the day.
This all is a drama what have they done in past when they had their chances ? they are past they are failure .... now its a new era need a new leadership only option is imran khan :-)
And its funny how people keep saying what PML(N) did for Punjab and specially law and order. Yes, this tenure has been difficult but historically, the accomplishments in the past for lar and order are exemplary. Do people in Lahore remember the culture of "Badmashi" that was prevalent or does the world revolve around DHA and thats it ? Who was it who got rid of Mubeen Butt, Aslam Bassa, and Naveed Lumbiwala or these names seems too Punjabi movies to the DHA folks? Lahore wasn't always organized crime free people. It was Shahbaz ( though i admit through extrajudicial means) got rid of these people and made Teefi Butt, Gogi Butt etc to flee out of the country. And this all in this tenure when Lahore underworld was already weakened.
And that is not all. Shahbaz himself eliminated their own armed wing (MSF) and with that almost eliminated the influence of guns from the universities across Lahore. Yes there is Jamiyat in PU but considering the days on 90s when Jamiyat, MSF and PSF were all armed and were present in all universities, if not perfect, the situation today is a 100 times better.
Violence is a human trait that cant be eliminated. It can be curtailed with help of executive as well as string judicial foundation which Pakistan doesnt have, specially at lower court level. But to say, they didnt accomplish anything is just ignorant.
The burger awam actually have no idea about the underbelly of Lahore.
No comments. It is Pakistan's internal matter. I wish Pakistan to be at par with Turkey and Malaysia.
Who'd believe the PML-N but the most gullible and those easily swayed by rhetoric and empty speeches? If Sharif indeed knew the identity of the killers and cared about the case, why should he wait to be in power before exposing and arrest them? He criticizes the Sindh government for failing to give succor to the flood victims in that province. He fails to mention PML-N's own failings in this regard in Punjab. How about the dengue scare? Was PML-N effective in countering the menace? Lahore was festooned with posters of him and his brother, perhaps as part of PML-N's anti-dengue campaign and not a ploy to win votes. But that was about it. Come on people, give some thought to what the politicians are saying. They are all cut fom the same fabric. They entice people with pledges and exploit their sense of helplessness by appealing to emotions. They make fiery speeches, complete with gesticulations, that are long on promises, but break them once in power.
NS is a political offspring of dictator gen Zia. He was with Zia against the PPP when ZAB was hanged by the military. He was the benficiary of all the misiries to PPP, ZAB and BB. Sindhis are not that stupid as NS thinks. They still remember the elimination of "all" their leaders by the rigtwing forces.
Nawaz Sharif, another banana republic front-man.
good example of mature leadership style!!!!!!! imran khan should learn
please dont talk about sindhi, punjabi, blouchi, pathan etc. called yourself "PAKISTANI" and be proud of it . . . .:-) love to all
he's just messing with the sindhi sentiment and his key point is to bring BB's plotters to justice. he seems to be trying to win them over emotionally. sly and sensationalist politicking, apparently, is what's been winning (if not the guns).
Now he is going to solve BB's murder case. I can say it for sure that if PPP would have worked according to the Charter of Democracy “Pahle thussi (PPP) phir assien (PML-N)”, you would have been as happy as others with no issues what so ever.
PLEASE!!! Don't bring these blood relations (brothers/sisters) into this. Relations go wrong at times and we don’t want this in Pakistan. All of these provinces and territories are important parts of Pakistan. Punjab is as important to Pakistan as Sindh is. Pakistan can not survive without any of the four provinces. When the whole Pakistan eats (gets flour and rice) from Punjab, Sindh (with Karachi being economical centre) make sure that Punjab continues to do so and we get minerals and other important resources (including gas and oil) from Baluchistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwan.
Nawaz Shareef! We have seen your government and we are happy without you. We don’t want people who chose to live abroad during tough times. We need somebody who wants to live and die for Pakistan and the people of Pakistan. Why don’t you wear Sindhi topi and Ajrak in Punjab if you are so brotherly attached to the people of Sindh. Before you go anywhere esle, I would suggest that you better save your vote bank from Imran Khan.
@Patriotic: This is not your desktop wallpaper where you can be happy with the fact that "change is good". I've got no business in IK's personal life, i dont care what he did. But the type of people he's rounding up for himself... well lets just say 'you're known by the type of company you keep around you'
A voter should not be bitten twice from the same hole. However, for his stupidity and been carried away by the lofty claims and rosy promises, the voter was bitten twice from the same hole. No more for a third time, Mian sahibd. If you, God forbid, happen to woo and lure the simple voter for a third time, you wouldn't deliver and ameliorate the condition of the downtrodden peoople. Yes, but your industrial empire will expand and your yes-men and sycophants will be showered with favours as you did in your two governments. Whatever is left out by the current corrupt government, you will sweep and pocket the rest.
Plus Punjab is already not getting gas for 4 out of 7 days in a week. too bad its still not bankrupt, infact it has the highest growth amongst all provinces. Don't put the lethargy of Sindh and its leaders on Punjab, Sindh at this rate will fall way behind KP in the coming years
@Umer: Oh so you know for sure that the electricity comes from Mangla and Tarbela directly, are they the only two power plants of Pakistan? Second its just akin to a wishful thinking that without Sindh Punjab will go bankrupt, its actually vice versa. Sindh has over 40 Billion liability in terms of electricity bills, while punjab has a liability less than 3-4 Billion. Sindh being underwater that it is cannot produce feed for itself FYI.
NS on a headhunting (recruitment) mission to Sindh. Looking for Lotas.
@Patriotic: if your imran khan needs change he has to work hard with people rather playing for establishment. he is just a mindless person on earth, who do things first then think and come up sorry. now he is joining hands with same people he used to call corrupt. no one tell us why "future of pakistan" kissing feet of corrupt past of pakistan? if some one asks , azeem leader start giving examples of prophet and m.a. jinnah. what a joke. what a shame. imran was mna for 5 years . what has he done in those 5 years? i tell u what he did... he kept silent.
Excellent Eye Opening comments for PML-N. Just answer the above comments and you are all set for the race. Note: There are some very realistic reservations the voters of smaller province has shown here.
Wow. Look at all the PML-N internet supporters that all of a sudden showed up recently. Looks like PML-N decision to invest on internet publicity is working.
Bottom line is that it is hard to beleive anything that these old used politicians say. Sharif had his chance and did not deliver. They have ruled Punjab for most part in last couple of decades, but I don't see any change in Punjab. So I say "Mian sahib jan deyo and IK nu aan deyo" ---- Please meharbani karo.
@PTI are these also patwarees?????
Y are u guys causing a big issue of NS adressing rally in sindh. is Sindh not in pakistan? Its a good step by mian sahab. Sindh belongs to pakistan punjab belongs to pakistan i belong to pakistan and u belong to pakistan. spread lov not hate we are one nation, Qaids nation.
well mostly peopple belong to other regions of larkana they were forced by their leader to participate...he even cant gather people from a city but he is trying to gather scattered pmlq in sindh..
This is the spirit sir! May Allah help you in this goal.
@Pakistanians: Tell us how Imran Khan can fix it ? http://www.dawn.com/2011/12/10/pakistans-nov-trade-deficit-2-17-billion.html
@Pakistanians: WHAT change ? tell me anything other than your rhetoric on 'change' & please dont give me the word 'corruption' in your reply! can Any of you torus or your leader explain HOW'd Imran Khan fix this circular debt of over 300 Billion rupees? How'd he control Inflation ? Whats your fiscal Policy ? How'd he control food-inflation ? How'd he increase exports ? How'd he minimize Imports? Sorry i asked Much more than Imran Khan Knows :p
@Aamer Khwaja: I had rather see Imran represent Pakistan on the international platform. He's a humanitarian and is well educated. Who would you rather have as Pakistan's prime minister? Someone who has a Political Science and Economics degree from Oxford or people as incapable as Nawaz. Moreover, everyone of us grew hearing tales of how Imran got us the World Cup. In a country where religious, sectarian and ethnic violence divides us, having a common and respected leader would unite us. I may disagree with some of Imran's policies especially his views about the Taliban, but hey even the current government is holding peace talks with the. Rahman Malik thanked them for peace during Muharram as if they control us. Things can't possibly get worse with Imran in power. People criticize Imran saying he has no experience. I say there's a first time for everything. People say he is influenced with Western culture. I say I have experienced Western culture and would go as far as saying that a lot of aspects of their culture are better than ours especially respect for everyone and equal rights. People say he used to be a playboy and that he married a Jew. I say get over his ladies. No one has the right to criticize anyone's else's personal life and if God has allowed Muslim men to marry Christians and Jews, then who we to judge Imran? Change is good. And we desperately need it. Let it come!
Punjab and Sindh are brothers, but Sindh is the brother who is not worthy of holding the capital of Pakistan. Also, Sindh is the brother that earns the money and spends it to support his brother. Bigger brother Punjab is also the head of the family and makes all the decisions -- how much each brother gets to eat, how much water other people can drink, whether they get electricity, etc... This doesn't even start to get into the relationship of KP, GB, POK, etc. Balochistan is the brother of a different mother and FATA with its Frontier Crime Regulation is treated like the black-sheep and the problem-child of the family.
@kabeer: Hmm, I guess the Urdu speaking community doesnt need to be included in "brotherhood". And then people blame us for spreading "sobaiat"
kia headline hey....intelligent nawaz sharif..
Mian sahab, dont try to get sympathy.
@Aamer Khawaja:
The electricity comes from Mangla and Tarbela both not in Punjab so what is Punjab’s contribution to all this? Unless you think Kashmir and Pakhtoonkhawa are both Punjbi territories.
However let’s do it this way. Punjab keeps “its” electricity and Sindh keep its gas and produces its electricity from it. Fair? I doubt that Punjab will concede as of the Punjab’s industrial areas and much of transport runs on gas from Sindh. Without Sindh, Punjab will be bankrupt in days causing massive unemployment.
In my opinion you could be the best leader of Pakistan but in the past two years you and your brother did limited your politics in Punjab so the faith of Sindhis have badly damaged.I thing there is still time to you change your style of Politics and bring all the looted money in Pakistan to build the confidence of Pakistani otherwise we have no choice but to test Imran Khan the only rays of light for saving Pakistan with the current situation.
There is one thing that Punjab has given to all of its brothers and that is military operation. From East Pakistan to Pakhtoonkhawa all have been worthy of it in Punjab’s eyes.
@Umer: The topic you're trying to start is almost un-ending. Fact is the capital of Sindh takes 700MW of electricity from Punjab and hasn't made any payments for the same.
Mian Jee, Benazir was killed in Rawalpindi that falls in Punjab's jurisdiction. So why didn't you ask your Khadim bro to initiate an inquiry into unmasking the killers of BB ? or if federation stopped you from doing so, then why didn't you condemn the federation from stopping your government from inquiring into BB's death ? Sir, your politics of "In ka mission, phir un ka mission" is way too old to relate and vouch for. Who knows whats your next mission... Jeddah-Nas; May be?
These words are so old and boring now. We want some thing change in Pakistan. You just follow IK line " Mian saab jaan diyo sadi wari aan diyo ". LoL..
@Patriotic
I see how well these 'better people' are performing for Pakistan right now. If you find them better then God help us.
Selective morality is immorality!! We are all one entity............Pakistanis! Nawaz sharif must learn from the past.
Good Keep it up Mian Saab, we are with you...!
@ Waleed Did you even read the news? He was at Larkana addressing a rally. So being from Punjab talking in Sindh he was specific. Get off your criticism train and read the whole thing for a change.
And on all other naysayers, what does he have to do? Even when he says/does all the right things, you are here commenting in negative. Is he an angel ? No. Would you vote for someone else ? Yes. Is that your right? Yes. But whatever happened to rationality? No man is evil personified and no man is goodness complete. Good deeds/words by anyone should be appreciated. Its simple as that. But i guess PTI supporters has rationality stripped away when piped piper played his tune.
hate you politicians , who take name of provinces for political gains Its one Pakistan , provinces are just for administrative purpose
This is actually mature politics, planning in advance with some strategy...certainly sets him apart
No doubt, Mian sb's pouplairty is far more in Sindh than PTI or Zardari. Instead of using only rhetoric and luring some Feudals, If Mian sb and team work seriously on understanding local issues and link their agenda on solving them. They can make permanent inroads in the politics of Sindh.The gross root level support for Mian sb is increasing.But it seems that Mian sb still doesnt know the political, cultural, social and economical demands or issues of Sindhi people. Mian sb needs very good team which could evaluate and understand on ground issues of Sindh so that PMLN could target those issues and deliver people. This time, Sindh is yearning for change, if PMLN missed this opportunity, they will not easily make any progress in future in Sindh.Good luck to PMLN!!
Imran Khan Zindabad PTI Zindabad
Sindh is Punjab's brother and Punjab is Sindh's brother.
Mian Nawaz Sharif Sahib:
Can you please explain are they real brother's or step brothers?
Therefore Punjab will continue to take its brother’s gas and revenue. Punjab is more like Baradar-e-Yousaf to the other provinces; takes away everything and gives almost nothing in return.
The best pick is Nawaz Shareef; May Allah help and guide him in his endeavors in the favor of Pakistan!
What about Baluchistan? They seem to be a step brother.
great jalsa by PML-N in Larkana.. Sindh badal raha ha ..
Nawaz Sharif also said Blaochistan and KP are our brothers.. even he mentioned kashmir and gilgit ... laiken adhi news chaptay hain hamara yeh media walay loools
What about Balochistan and KP? It's not a brother-brother situation; bring the country together, unlike Canadians where Quebec has separate govt council.
@Patriotic: Absolutely correct. LoL
just like the way Nawaz Sharif and Asif Zardari are brothers
Nawaz you had your chance. You couldn't deliver, just leave it now for better people. You are a failure!
Mr. NS., Would you like to tell us if talibans, SSP, and all the Punjabi religious terrorists are also our brothers or not?
And here punjab wants to be BIG BROTHER.....
Nawaz Shareef you are the only mature hope we have. I really appreciate your efforts for gathering nation at a single platform.