PPP chief sticks to his demand of holding timely elections saying Zardari has his own view on polls n Claims people always look towards PPP for relief whenever they suffer from inflation, poverty.

KARACHI  -  Referring to the ongoing split over the issue of timely elec­tions with his father Asif Ali Zardari, Pakistan Peoples Par­ty (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhu­tto-Zardari has said that from the leadership to the workers, all are bound by the decisions of the party. “We will make col­lective decisions, carry everyone along and as you have never dis­appointed me, I will never dis­appoint you,” said Bilawal while addressing a referring to he said while addressing the workers and public gathered to welcome him in Sakrand on Sunday.

Asif Ali Zardari the other day had said that completing the de­limitation exercise was neces­sary before holding polls. 

But, when Bilawal was queried on the statement that seemed a deviation from the PPP’s stance, he said his preference to stick by decisions made by the party leadership (over elections with­in 90 days) instead of his fa­ther’s stance, saying he was only bound to follow his father in family matters.

“You should ask Zardari Sa­hib for his remarks,” he replied to a question posed by a report­er, who referred to his father’s statement in support of elec­tions being held after fresh de­limitation. Addressing the par­ty workers, Bilawal said that if the general elections cannot be held within 90 days after the dissolution of the National As­sembly on August 9, then at least it should be told when the same are going to be held.

He said that the PPP workers are waiting for when the Elec­tion Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will release the schedule for the upcoming general elec­tions, so that they can start the election campaign.

Bilawal said that the power to elect the government should be given to the people and taunted the former PPP allies that if they are running from elections, then let them run away. 

He said that his party was nev­er afraid of elections. “We have fought elections carrying dead bodies on our shoulders even. (But) if some of our allies are running away from the election, let them run. They are scared, they run away from local elec­tions, they run away from by-elections, and maybe now they are afraid of general elec­tions too,” he added.

He said that he had tried his best to convince the MQM-P that they should contest the lo­cal bodies elections but they got scared and retreated. Even they could not save their two towns. He further said that PTI prac­tices politics of division and ha­tred. “Just as we wiped out PTI from Hyderabad, we will wipe out it from the entire country,” he vowed and added that it is his message to PTI that the Jiyalas are coming. He said that when­ever the people in the country had to suffer due to inflation, un­employment and poverty, they always looked to the PPP to get out of those difficulties.

He said that except his par­ty, all the other parties in the country are representatives of elite class, and whenever they come into power, they bene­fit the rich and their capitalist friends. He said that on the oth­er hand, whenever PPP gets an opportunity, it benefits the peo­ple. “When PPP comes to gov­ernment, it brings revolutionary programs like Benazir Income Support Program (BISP) for women.” Chairman Bilawal said that last year due to the climate change when record rains oc­curred in the country, the most affected province was Sindh. He said that the PPP performance in terms of relief and rehabilitation of rain victims was outstanding as compared with other parties.

“I had promised the rain vic­tims to build them houses. (Now) such houses are being built in Sindh,” he added. He also reiterated his commitment that similar to Sindh, he wants to give ownership rights to the land of their houses to the rain victims of the other provinces.

The Chairman PPP appreciat­ed the people of Shaheed Bena­zirabad district, saying that they had never disappointed the par­ty leadership. Meanwhile, Bil­awal received warm welcome by party workers and locals in towns and cities en route from Hyderabad to Sakrand. On this occasion, the party workers kept raising slogans his favour.

On the occasion, Bilawal Bhu­tto Zardari also announced to regularize the Katchi Aba­dis across the country, like was done in Sindh, if his party wins the next general elections and adding if bureaucracy and judg­es can get plots, then plots can be given to poor citizens of the country too. The Chairman PPP, while addressing the in­auguration ceremony of the Water Filtration Plant in Hus­sainabad area of Hyderabad, said that the poor citizens and backward classes of the coun­try will have to be given their due rights. “Unless the purchas­ing power of the people increas­es, the economy will not benefit them,” he contended. Address­ing the dwellers of Katchi Aba­dis across the country, he said, “This was my maternal grandfa­ther’s promise to public, and my mother’s dream, and I promise you that if I get the chance, I will give land ownership rights to all those living in Katchi Abadis ev­erywhere in the country.”

The PPP Chairman said that a false propaganda and character assassination has been going on against his party and its leader­ship for three generations, add­ing that such character assassi­nation was done during the last 15 years because there was a conspiracy to bring Imran Khan to power. “In those days it was said that there is a lot of garbage in Sindh, while the rest of Paki­stan is clean,” he recalled.

He said that such false pro­paganda is being sold in Pun­jab and Peshawar, and “we have to respond to such lies.” Bilawal said that the MQM, when in pow­er, did not work on its own, and blamed the provincial govern­ment. He said that MQM lead­ers should be asked what they have done for Hyderabad. While giving a historical reference, he pointed out that the water sup­ply scheme was given to Hyder­abad city for the first time in 1911, then during the 70s by the government of Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and for the third time in 1988 by the government of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto.