ISLAMABAD - Pakistan People’s Party senior leader Rehman Malik said Monday that former president Asif Ali Zardari was the ‘natural heir’ to the late Benazir Bhutto, a two-time prime minister, who was assassinated in 2007.

In an exclusive interview with The Nation on the eve of Benazir Bhutto’s 65th birth anniversary, Senator Malik said that Zardari had tried to complete the mission of the slain PPP leader in the years following her death.

“I feel Zardari has proven to be the natural heir to Benazir Bhutto. He did his best to accomplish her mission (when the PPP was in power from 2008 to 2013) and is still striving for the same. The whole party recognizes his efforts,” he said.

Benazir Bhutto, born on June 21, 1953, and assassinated on December 27, 2007, served as the prime minister from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 1996.

She was the first woman to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority nation. She chaired or co-chaired the PPP from the early 1980s — after her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s execution in 1979 — until her assassination in 2007.

After Benazir Bhutto’s death, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was elected as the PPP Chairman while Zardari became the PPP’s co-chairman.

Last year, Zardari and Bilawal were elected as PPP Parliamentarians and PPP chief respectively to comply with the Election Commission of Pakistan’s rules. Both are contesting for National Assembly seats in the July 25 polls.

Malik, a former interior minister and chief security officer of Benazir Bhutto, said only Zardari could drag the country out of the crisis. He insisted that Zardari will be the ‘most suitable’ candidate for the prime minister’s slot after the July 25 elections.

“He (Zardari) has done it in the past and can do it again. He can keep the nation united with his political maturity,” the lawmaker said.

Asked if the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf can vote for Zardari as the prime minister, he said: “They (the PTI) voted for us in the Senate chairman and deputy chairman’s elections (in March). I thanked the PTI after the voting (in Senate) and I am sure I will be thanking them (the PTI) again after the PM’s elections (for voting in favour of a PPP nominee for the PM’s slot).”

Malik said that there was no one among the candidates for the PM’s slot who was as wise and sensible as Zardari. The PTI and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, he said: “Don’t have good candidates for the top slot. I am sure Zardari will be able to garner enough support to form the government.”

The PPP leader predicted a hung parliament after the July 25 polls where larger parties will need smaller parties to form a coalition government. “New heroes will be the ‘independents’. They will be the kingmakers. Hopefully, many independents will join the PPP to improve its tally. We will see after July 25, but the PPP may become the single largest party,” he claimed.

He said, according to the vision of Benazir Bhutto, the PPP had awarded tickets to party workers for national and provincial assemblies. “We did not look for electables who regularly change the loyalties and damage the democratic process. The electables think they are the wheelers and dealers of politics. People should reject such elements to strengthen democracy,” he said.

He said that the PTI had come with the slogan of change but had ignored party workers when awarding the tickets for the elections. “They (the PTI) have used the washing powder that cleans all sins. They have nominated ‘dry-cleaned’ politicians for the July elections. People should discard such change,” he stressed.

Malik said that the PPP had not tried to use the ‘sympathy wave’ after the assassination of Benazir Bhutto in 2007 but stood strong to save the country. “Zardari’s slogan of ‘Pakistan Khappay (long live Pakistan) was aimed at uniting Pakistan. We could easily have used the sympathy wave to win more seats but we were content with lesser seats as we meant to work for Pakistan, not for political interests,” he maintained.

The PPP leader said that Bilawal will win the National Assembly seat and start his parliamentary career. “Aseefa Bhutto will also contest in by-elections,” he added.

SHAFQAT ALI