Or a little bit of this and a little bit of that?
The disappearance of Asif Zardari from the national political scene for some time has also raised questions over the fate of the former president in the party
The stay of Bilawal Bhutto Zardari — the chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in Lahore for over a week to celebrate the party’s 49thfoundation day is being termed as his formal entry in the political arena by many political observers. It is argued that the son of Benazir Bhutto has been given full command to run the affairs of the party. The recent announcement of Bilawal to contest the election of National Assembly in order to take active part in parliamentary politics and to become leader of the opposition resultantly was hailed by the party workers. The panaflexes and hoardings carrying the photographs of Asif Ali Zardari were felt missing at Bilawal house during the foundation day celebrations of the party.
The disappearance of Asif Zardari from the national political scene for some time has also raised questions over the fate of the former president in the party. Although Bilawal has said he will become prime minister and his father will take oath as the president of the country in 2018 but many political pundits are still claiming that Bilawal has taken over the reins of the party as Chief Minister Sindh was replaced over the insistence of Bilawal and the recent shake-up in the Punjab has also been done on his demand.
“Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is the chairman of the party and according to the party constitution the chairman is completely entitled to take decisions,” newly selected information secretary of PPP Central Punjab Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar told DNA.
He said the party takes guidance from the political wisdom of Asif Zardari on several issues, in reply to a question about CM Sindh’s frequent visits to Dubai to meet Zardari. According to Khokhar, Bilawal will play a proactive role while Zardari’s guidance will also remain for party workers as he played an important role in strengthening the federation of Pakistan in the aftermath of Benazir Bhutto’s assassination.
Talking about the future line of action of PPP in Punjab, Mustafa Khokhar said the party will adopt a highly aggressive mode and will exploit the incumbency factor of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N)-that has been ruling the province for two consecutive terms. The development projects of PML-N are myths and PPP will expose all the financial malpractices of the ruling party by holding press conferences at places where PML-N inaugurated the shiny projects during its tenure, he added.
“Punjab, being the largest province, plays a decisive role in every election as 148 seats of National Assembly are here and PPP cannot rule out the option of making electoral alliances with other political parties to give serious threat to PML-N,” he said.
The case of PPP has become easier now in the aftermath of Panama Leaks as this issue will prove a death knell for the ruling party, according to Khokhar. Talking about the manifesto of PPP, the information secretary said some radical changes for the manifesto are on the cards to make the party relevant in a bid to attract the youth in droves.
“The chances of PPP in central Punjab are very bleak for 2018 elections as only some electables in the form of Qamar Zaman Kaira and Nadeem Afzal Chan can win their seats but the party can make some differences in the south Punjab,” said veteran journalist and analyst Sohail Warraich said.
He was of the view that Asif Zardari will be willing to form a coalition government in Punjab by making an alliance with PTI. According to Warraich, Bilawal remained successful in his first venture by holding extremely festive celebrations of the foundation day in Lahore.
Bilawal has a bright future in the politics of Pakistan considering he can wait for 20 more years to become prime minister while Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan cannot do so because of their age factor
“Bilawal mixed the culture with politics in Lahore and Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto also used to do the same,” said Warraich, adding that Benazir Bhutto was shy to some extent in doing all such things because she was a woman and couldn’t afford to hold such activities. He also said this foundation day brought very positive aspects for Bilawal as he got a chance to meet party workers and now he can also speak Urdu with fluency. According to Warraich, both Bilawal and Zardari are indispensable for each other as Zardari needs the legacy of Bhutto in the form of Bilawal while the political wisdom of Zardari will be important for Bilawal as he advances in active politics.
The political approaches of both father and son might be different but their interests are same, he added. “The difference between them is not disturbing for the party as one saw plenty of difference of opinion between Nusrat Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto as well in the past,” Warraich said.
He said Bilawal has a bright future in the politics of Pakistan considering he can wait for 20 more years to become prime minister while Nawaz Sharif and Imran Khan cannot do so because of their age factor.
The party will have to work hard to reinvigorate itself in Punjab keeping in view its only seven seats in the Punjab Assembly and only three seats in the National Assembly from Punjab. According to some party insiders, Bilawal will lead the party from the front to capture the vote of the masses while Zardari will play politics of alliances and drawing rooms because he is an expert in doing so. It was astonishing for every one when Zardari landed at Mansoora — the headquarter of Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) — in 2014 to have negotiations with JI chief Siraj-ul-Haq during the days when sit-ins of PTI and PAT were in full swing. It was also surprising for many when Zardari landed at Jati Umra — the personal residence of Nawaz Sharif — to diffuse the political stalemate that surfaced during the sit-in days. By connecting all these dots, it can be predicted that different roles and policies of both father and son might bring some positive results for the party.
