ISLAMABAD – The central executive committee (CEC) of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is meeting today (Sunday) at Naudero House, Larkana, under the joint chairmanship of party chief Bilawal Bhutto and co-chairman President Asif Ali Zardari.
A party source told Pakistan Today that the meeting could prove to be a launching pad for Bilawal’s entry into mainstream politics. “There is a strong possibility that Bilawal announces the beginning of his political career during the meeting to counter growing criticism against President Asif Ali Zardari’s policies,” he said.
“There is another view that Bilawal should enter the political arena before the next general elections. However, Zardari and Bilawal would make a final decision after seeking the view of the party CEC,” the source added. The presidential spokesman, Farhatullah Babar, confirmed that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto would chair the CEC meeting along with his father, the president.
Three of the party’s CEC members are still suspended, including Dr Safdar Abbasi, a close confidant of the late Benazir Bhutto, Minister of State for Railways Afzal Sindhu and Dr Israr Shah, who lost both his legs in a suicide attack on a PPP public rally in 2007.
The three suspended members have not been invited to attend the meeting for “violating the party policy”. However, Safdar Abbasi and Israr Shah claim they have not breached party policies while Sindhu was suspended after he issued a complete list of NRO beneficiaries.
