- Bilawal plans to bring ‘young entrepreneurs’ in PPP to improve party’s image and is eyeing PPP’s veteran Jahangir Badr for a major role in PPP’s reorganisation process
Following his expected return in the country’s political scene after a gap of almost seven months, Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is planning to give PPP veteran Jahangir Badr a lead role in reorganising the party in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.
A PPP insider said that Bilawal has been given a go ahead by Zardari to reorganise the party in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP), where the PPP is facing a meltdown at the hands of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan. Sindh and Balochistan provinces, however, would remain with Zardari and Faryal Talpur for the time being, he added.
“PPP’s internal divisions in KP have led the party to a severe defeat in recent local government elections in KP. Bilawal pre-empts a repeat of KP elections in Punjab. So he is trying to bring major changes in the PPP. The PPP is all set to be purged of cronies of remnants of General Musharraf and General Ziaul Haq. The reorganisation would be solely decided by Bilawal. However, he is banking on party’s veteran leader Jahangir Badr in this regard who knows each and every PPP leader and worker in across the country,” the source said.
“Jahangir Badr has been sidelined in the PPP since 2008. Now Bilawal plans to give Badr a lead role since he has been given a free hand by Zardari to meet with the party leaders from Punjab and KP, choose his own team and reorganise the party,” the source added.
“Since law and order situation improved in KP, Zardari has tasked Bilawal to focus on luring youth into PPP and give a tough time to Imran Khan and his team. Meanwhile, Bilawal has directed Badr to contact party’s loyal and staunch workers as he wants to build his own new team,” a PPP leader said, adding that those PPP leaders failed to produce results are to be shown the door. “They would be replaced by a younger lot which would be loyal and sincere to the party.”
The PPP leader said that Bilawal is going to bring young political entrepreneurs into the party who will be emerging as new ambassadors of the party.
“Bilawal is likely to visit Punjab next week or the following one. He would remain in Lahore during the holy month of Ramzan. During this visit, the party chairman would be focusing on the reorganisation of the party from UC level to town, tehsil, district, division and provincial levels. This would be the biggest shakeup of the party after 1990s,” another PPP leader said.
According to PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari’s spokesperson Farhatullah Babar, exact dates for Bilawal’s visit had not yet been finalised, however he is scheduled to visit Punjab soon.
