Bilawal highlights PPP’s pro-poor spending approach

LARKANA:

 

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday said that the issues of increasing inflation, unemployment, and poverty could be solved only by helping the common man.

Bilawal visited the Vakiya Sangi village of the Larkana district, where he distributed title deeds of residential plots among people affected by last year’s devastating floods, according to a statement issued by Bilawal House Media Cell.

The PPP chairman also attended a ceremony to distribute title deeds among 5,000 families of Larkana. He also inspected the houses built by the Sindh People's Housing for Flood Affectees (SPHF) for the flood victims.

Addressing the ceremony, Bilawal said that the people sitting in Islamabad had no idea of the sufferings of the flood victims. However, he added, whenever the PPP came to power, it introduced pro-poor and pro-public projects.

“Inflation, unemployment, and poverty are increasing in the country,” he said. "Problems will be solved only by helping the common man, and the day is not far-off when we will make Pakistan economically strong."

He said that the general elections were not far away, and “after winning the next general election, similar pro-people projects will be undertaken in the whole of the country – Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, and Balochistan.

Bilawal stressed that the PPP had a different ideology than other political parties of the country, as it believed in more spending on the poor citizens. “There is an ideological difference between the PPP and other parties,” he said.

"Other parties believe that making the rich richer benefits the country, but our party believes that investing money in poor citizens strengthens the economy,” Bilawal, who is also the foreign minister of the country, continued.

“Rich people put money into their bank accounts and forget about it, but poor citizens will spend their children and family, so the money spreads to strengthen the economy," he added.

He pledged that he would complete the mission of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto and bring the country out of hard times.

“When women are economically empowered, it strengthens the entire family," he added.

He lauded the Sindh government for turning the natural calamity of floods into an opportunity.

“Now, the flood victims’ houses are being built across the province. Two million houses are to be built. This is the beginning of a revolution,” he said.

“The Sindh government is providing financial assistance to the flood victims to rebuild their houses. Now, such houses are being constructed, which will be flood-resilient,” the PPP chairman added.

He said that home ownership right was an asset, which had been given to every woman of the flood-affected families.

“The project of giving ownership rights to the flood victims will be completed before the end of the government’s term.”

Earlier, the PPP chairman inspected the houses being built for the flood victims in the Vakiya Sangi village.

He also received a briefing from SPHF Chief Operating Officer Malik Najaf Khan on the project.

On the occastion, Sindh Rural Support Organisation (SRSO) Chief Executive Officer Dital Kalhoro informed the PPP chief that the construction of 147 of the 266 flood-damaged houses in Vakiya Sangi had been started.

He added that the first instalment for the construction of the houses for 138 flood victims, the second instalment for 102 houses and the third instalment for 60 houses had been released.

Meanwhile, Bilawal visited the family of late Dr Bilqees Malik who died in Larkana a few days ago and offered Fateha.

He stayed there for some time, and condoled with the adopted children of late Bilqees.

Paying rich tributes to Bilqees, Bilawal said that she spent her entire life serving the poor and needy people.

“Late Dr Bilqees served the people … she was an asset to the nation,” he added.
Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, PPP Sindh President Nisar Khuhro, Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon, Local Governments Minister Nasir Shah, party leaders and local notables also accompanied Bilawal.

(With input from APP)