Freebies galore in PPP’s electoral agenda

Bilawal unfolds ambitious plans for poor, says party does not make false promise

LAHORE:

The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) unveiled an ambitious electoral agenda on Thursday, pledging to provide up to 300 units of free electricity, allocate free housing, ensure complimentary healthcare, furnish free education, and commit to doubling the incomes of the economically disadvantaged segments of society.

Expounding upon the party’s 10-point manifesto at a press conference and addressing a workers convention at Jatti Umra, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari underscored the party’s unwavering dedication to augmenting the incomes and the purchasing power of the people.

The announcements came after a meeting of the PPP Central Executive Committee (CEC), which officially nominated Bilawal as the candidate for the prime minister of Pakistan if the party won the general elections scheduled for February 8.
According to the manifesto, a PPP government would provide up to 300 units of free electricity to the people unable to pay high electricity bill, provide free high-quality education to the youth and reiterating its commitment to provision of free quality medical care to all citizens.

Referring to the party manifesto at the workers convention, Bilawal insisted that the PPP did not make false promises, unlike its political rivals – the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). “The PPP will fulfil its promise, if it hopefully gets the chance,” he said.

At the press conference, Bilawal highlighted the establishment of hospitals in every district of Sindh, where people receive medical treatment, even for intricate procedures such as heart-related interventions. He expressed his intent to expand these facilities nationwide.

In a taunting reference to the PML-N leadership, the PPP chairman pointed to their failure in establishing a cardiac treatment facility in Raiwind, their home area, insinuating their tendency to seek medical attention in London.

He suggested an alternative by mentioning the National Institute of Cardiovascular Diseases (NICVD) in Karachi and proposed establishing a similar institution in Raiwind for the PML-N leader’s prospective heart-related ailments post-February 8.

Highlighting the PPP’s fifth manifesto pledge, Bilawal reiterated commitment to providing free housing for the underprivileged. “We are building two million houses in Sindh for flood-affected people,” he added, promising to extend this initiative nationwide to building three million more houses.

Furthermore, he announced that former president and PPP Co-Chairman Asif Zardari’s “revolutionary programme”, the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP), would be expanded to introduce the ‘Benazir Mazdoor Card’ for workers and the ‘Benazir Kissan Card’ for farmers of the country.

He further promised stipends for unemployed youth and interest-free loans for students, alongside the initiation of an ‘Ending the Hunger Programme’ at the Union Council level. He asked party workers to convey “PPP’s unique vision and plans to fulfil these commitments to the people of Punjab.

“The PPP stands alone in having the vision and the potential to extricate the country from its current crisis,” he said, stressing that his party was not competing against the other political parties but with the adversities of poverty, unemployment, and inflation.

On Wednesday, the PPP officially nominated Bilawal for the position of prime minister if the party won the general elections. the PPP-CEC, chaired by him, delved into the party’s election strategy in Punjab, seat-to-seat adjustments with like-minded political entities, coalition strategies, and other matters.