Special Assistant to Prime Minister on Information and Broadcasting (SAPM) Dr Firdous Ashiq Awan on Sunday said the ideology of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had expired as the poor masses in Sindh were dying of poverty, malnutrition and dog bites.
She was addressing the oath-taking ceremony of Hafizabad Press Club’s newly elected leadership.
In her response to Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari’s remarks in his party’s convention at Quetta, she said the deposed corrupt political leadership was making false narrative to mislead the nation.
“They only feel pain of poor masses when they are not in power. Public to them means their dear ones and close aides. But the real problem and matter for concern is the looted money they have plundered from this country,” she added.
Firdous said a politically immature party leader (Bilawal Bhutto Zardari) was elaborating the political philosophy of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto in Quetta, claiming to be Bhutto’s successor and son of Benazir Bhutto.
“He should realise that Larkana, the city of late Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, has failed to provide medical relief to dog bite victims and the people of Thar are dying due to poor nutrition. If Bhutto’s ideology was alive then the plunderers of public money would have been behind the bars,” she added.
She lambasted Bilawal for criticising the government and said the Sindh chief minister was the real puppet head of the provincial government. Prime Minister Imran Khan believed in meritocracy whereas the Sindh government leadership was totally controlled by the PPP top brass, the SAPM added.
“Bilawal should know that the ‘umpire’ whom you refer to in your speech is [actually] the people who rejected your leadership in Larkana polls. The PPP chairman will have to remain in anxiety for the next four years,” she said.
The special assistant said masses would re-elect Prime Minister Imran Khan. Referring to Bilawal Bhutto, she said, “Your party has been limited to few districts of Sindh. You buried the ideology of Bhutto and revived the dogma of corruption, which led to the debacle of the PPP in the entire country.”
She said that Karachi during the past two decades’ rule of the PPP had turned into Mohenjo Daro and dumping site due to poor administration.
Dr Firdous Ashiq said the people had seen a family flying abroad after getting bail from the court. Along with Nawaz Sharif, facilitator Shehbaz Sharif had also left the country, ignoring his basic role of an opposition leader in the National Assembly, she added.
Referring to Shehbaz Sharif’s claim of committing corruption of not even a penny, she said, “Yes, he is right. He has not embezzled a penny but billions of rupees, and used the looted money to buy palaces for his children.”
She said the Sharif family would have to face the law as the country would fall into a crisis if a former prime minister and chief minister evaded the law.
Firdous said the government knew about the problems being faced by the masses, and was taking steps to overcome them. The SAPM said Prime Minister Imran Khan had two options; either to let the country go bankrupt or shift some burden to the masses to revive the economic structure.
She hoped that inflation and economic crisis would come to an end in the near future, as the government was working hard to provide relief to the downtrodden segment of society.
She said realising the problems faced by the farmers, the prime minister had increased the rates of wheat by Rs 365 per 40 kilogrammes, besides taking steps to ensure availability of fertiliser and seed at low rates. For the first time, the incumbent government had included agriculture sector in the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC), which was earlier confined to mere roads and infrastructure.
She said the national development was impossible without bringing the agricultural revolution as around 70 percent people of the country were linked with the sector. “We are going to strengthen the small farmers through easy loans. Moreover, we are also working to provide health cards to the journalist community under Ehsaas programme,” she added. The SAPM also announced a grant of Rs 1 million for the development of Hafizabad Press Club.
