F.P. Report
SARGODHA: Chairman Pakistan People’s Party, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari addressing a mammoth gathering of the Jiyalas in Bhalwal, Sargodha said that he is pleased to be standing on the soil of Punjab, among the Jiyalas of Punjab. He expressed his gratitude to the people for showing up in historic numbers despite the harsh weather.
Bilawal said that the country is at a crossroads, and is facing a plethora of challenges, including poverty, unemployment and inflation. Then, the country is also facing democratic and societal crises. The traditional politics of hatred and division has caused a divide between the entire society, families and institutions.
Pakistanis are being made to fight amongst themselves. The PPP has decided to strive for Pakistan, and bury this traditional politics of hatred and division that has only ever caused devastation. The PPP is contesting the elections only for the people, farmers, labourers and the youth. No other political party is concerned with the problems that the people face, they only care for their political ambitions and to come to power for the fourth time.
The PPP, on the other hand, is contesting the elections to implement on its manifesto and narrative that it has inherited from Quaid-e-Awam Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. The PPP does not engage in the politics of hatred and division, nor does it use foul language against its opponents.
PPP said that he has himself prepared a 10-point socioeconomic charter for the people to combat the current crises, which is an agreement between him and them. Those contesting for the seat of the PM for the fourth time are yet to apprise the people of their manifesto. When the lion comes to power, the blood of the people, farmers, labourers and youth is sucked. The PPP, on the contrary serves the people. We wish to establish a government of the people.
The PPP’s first promise to the people is to double their income. This is followed by the Party’s aim to provide 300 units of electricity free-of-cost to the deserving citizens of the country, and other parties are trying to copy this aim. Another promise to the people is that the PPP will construct three million houses for them throughout the country and give the ownership to the women of the households, as it is already doing in Sindh. Moreover, the Jiyalas need to convey the message to all those living in temporary housing that their space would be regularised and they will gain ownership. The PPP initiated the revolutionary Benazir Income Support Programme, and as an effort to combat poverty, we aim to not only expand the BISP but also provide interest-free loans to the women of the country so that they can run their household and gain financial independence while contributing to the economy of Pakistan. The PPP is the only party that believes in, ‘Kissan Khushaal, Mulk Khushaal’.
Hence, the Party is aiming to provide the ‘Benazir Kissan Card’ and the ‘Benazir Mazdoor Card’, to provide crop insurance and financial assistance to all small farmers, and social security to labourers, instead of giving subsidises worth billions to the elite. President Zardari had prioritised our own farmers, and this resulted in us becoming sugar and wheat exporters from being importers within a year.
Addressing the youth of the country, Chairman PPP said that they need to realise that the vote is their source of power, which was given to them by Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. It is in the hands of the people to render the conspiracy against the country redundant, by making their vote count and choosing not to opt for a person who is aiming to come to power for the fourth time. Chairman Bilawal said that the PPP has introduced the concept of the ‘Youth Card’, especially for the youngsters that have to go from pillar to post for employment despite possessing the educational qualifications. It was Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto’s dream that no child or adult goes to sleep on an empty stomach, which is why the PPP aims to bring forth the ‘Bhook Mitao Programme’.
The PPP will also construct free-of-cost healthcare institutions all over Punjab, as it has done in Sindh. This is especially important for Punjab, because its politicians are habitual of going to London to receive treatment. They were not able to establish a single institution despite getting three turns as we did in Sindh. Hence, the PPP will construct healthcare facilities in Sargodha, as well as Raiwand. Moreover, the Party also wishes to establish educational institutions such as universities and affiliated campuses not only in the major cities, but also in small towns and districts. The PPP resolves to cater to every stratum of the society, Chairman PPP said.
Bilawal said that the promises that the PPP is making to the people are not mere claims, they are a reflection of the PPP’s history. The Party has always fulfilled its promises to the people, be it in the eras of Quaid-e-Awam or Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto. The people have suffered through the eras of dictators General Zia and General Musharraf, as well as Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan. The people of the country need to decide whether they wish to suffer through the same politics again, in which even the families of one’s opponents are not spared.
