NOUSHERO FEROZE/Khairpur - Pakistan Peoples Party leader Asif Ali Zardari Saturday criticised Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif’s abysmal attendance in the National Assembly.

The former president said Nawaz would have preferred becoming president, if he had not empowered the parliament through constitutional amendment.

Addressing party workers in Moro and Noushero Feroze, PPP Co-Chairman also claimed that future lies with their and they will form the next government.

“If there is a future, it lies with the PPP,” he assured the workers and added in a veiled reference that those who are switching loyalties (from PPP) were rotten eggs.

“Even Captain (Imran Khan) was not taking them seriously and using them for photo sessions only... Mark my words; he [Imran] will not issue them party tickets [in next general elections].”

Zardari said the future leaders of PPP would be Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Asifa Zardari. He said whenever his two daughters tweet, he gives serious considerations to their views and reconsider decisions for joining of any person in the party.

He was most probably giving a reference to Irfanullah Khan Marwat’s case, whose joining the PPP was reverted after Zardari’s daughters resisted it strongly through aggressive tweets.

PPP de facto boss said his children who are the upcoming leadership of the party were vigilant to the rights of masses, as was evident from their playing a role in doubling the salaries of public servants in Sindh.

Feudal lords have been ruling the region and they did not serve the public, but now the future would be bright, he promised, ignoring the fact that he himself comes from a feudal background and his family has large swaths of land in Sindh.

Criticising Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif, Zardari said that “politics required foresight and decisions that make long lasting impacts” but the incumbent premier was setting bad precedents for the future leaders.

“Mian Saab attended only four sessions of the assembly in the past four years; whereas, even late Mohammad Khan Junejo had attended more sessions during his meek premiership.”

Zardai said the country’s foreign policy has weakened a lot, and Nawaz Sharif is losing the diplomatic as well as the democratic battles.

He said Bilawal had demanded the prime minister appointment a foreign minister two years ago, but his call went unheeded. He said the appointment of a foreign minister and empowerment of this vital ministry was essential for setting the things right on diplomatic front.

The former president also claimed credit for establishing better trade ties with neighbouring China and said that it will pave way “for the betterment of Pakistan’s future generations”.

He said Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and he (Zardari) promoted friendship with China and no country had any objection over the CPEC, except the ‘friendly country of Nawaz Sharif’ i.e. India.

In his address, Zardari also highlighted the issue of Kashmir and said Pakistan was pursuing the cause of Kashmir not because it sought to extend its territory but because it was very much “our own issue”.

India, on the other hand, had already occupied Nagaland and Sikkim, he pointed out, and regretted that the world had ignored the Indian aggressive designs.

“The world is watching Modi hugging Trump while our prime minister is playing with his pets in Murree.”

Zardari said that the country possesses every resource required for progress except a “sound mind”, [which could provide the requisite leadership].

In this connection, he highlighted his decisions regarding electricity production and complained that the Islamabad and its bureaucracy did not pay attention to them.