Party co-chairperson announces Rs1 billion development package for Lyari. PHOTO: INP
Talking about his present and future role in the party, Zardari said he would hold the fort until his son Bilawal Bhutto and youngest daughter Aseefa took the reins.
Responding to the perception that the PPP is going through a rough patch, he said the party had always surmounted whatever challenge came its way. “Benazir had entered the National Assembly with only 14 members and yet made a strong opposition.”
The former president asked Lyari not to lose heart. “The party will rise again.”
He said some anti-PPP elements were proclaiming that the party had no foothold in Punjab, Balochistan and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa. “Bhutto lives in every street, in every home,” he said.
Zardari said the PPP comprised people from all religions and communities. “The party exists in Sindh, Punjab, Balochistan, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Gilgit-Baltistan and Kashmir.”
The PPP has started its campaign for the next general elections from Lyari, Zardari told the crowd amid shouts of party slogans, songs and dances. “Lyari is a PPP stronghold. I was elected an MNA from this very town.”
He said Lyari was once the business hub of Pakistan but because of dictators like Pervez Musharraf and ‘their remains’, blood spilt in its streets. “The PPP will restore peace in Lyari, develop the town and bring prosperity to it.”
Sino-Pak projects
Referring to the slew of agreements for development projects signed between Islamabad and Beijing during Chinese President Xi Jinping’s recent visit, Zardari said the PPP would not politicise the Chinese investment. “Our Baloch brothers will be kept in the loop,” he told the Baloch-dominated Lyari. “The rights of all ethnic groups living in different provinces will be protected.”
The former president warned that his party would not let anyone derail the Chinese investment programme in Pakistan.
Kashmir issue
Zardari appealed to the Indian government to put an end to injustices against the people of Kashmir. “If the Muslims of India, Pakistan and Kashmir were to unite, it might prove disastrous for India.”
He said Pakistan was faced with a number of challenges, adding that it was the leadership that must think ahead of the existing problems.
“The PPP has the capacity to support all kinds of people living in Pakistan. [Party founder Zulfikar Ali] Bhutto sahib considered politics ‘worship’ and so do we. We serve the people irrespective of their caste, colour or creed.”
Development package
The former president announced the Sindh government’s development package for the people of Lyari, which includes Rs1 billion, an engineering college named after Bilawal and two low-cost housing schemes.
He also announced that all temporary employees of Lyari working in different departments would be regularised. “The issue of water should be resolved within three months,” Zardari instructed the chief minister, who was standing beside him.
Addressing the rally earlier, PPP Vice-President Sherry Rehman emphasised the importance of Lyari. “Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had started his political career from Lyari. Benazir chose Lyari as her first constituency. She even chose this town for her wedding ceremony, and her children were also born here. My daughter Marvi was also born in Lyari.”
Chief Minister Shah told the meeting that thousands of people were attending the rally. He said such a public gathering was arranged after a long time.
Talking about Lyari’s development, he said his government had already launched projects worth Rs3 billion in the town despite the deteriorating law and order situation.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 27th, 2015.
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