In the wake of losing support and its vote bank in Sindh, especially among Sindhi nationalists, the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) has fielded Zulfiqar Mirza to regain footing in his home battlefield, Pakistan Today has learnt.
Party sources claimed that Mirza – a true crony of President Zardari – went for his rant with the complete support and thump of the PPP co-chairman on the advice of party think tank, which in fact decided to launch the electioneering campaign for the next general election much earlier than schedule.
They said the think tank had been advised to play multifaceted political moves in the country to save the party from expected unprecedented defeat. Certain unpopular political moves of the present regime had caused the party popularity graph to plummet throughout the country, especially in Sindh, the party stronghold, where the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf (PTI) and the Sindhi nationalist parties have been using the inauspicious situation in their favour and against the PPP.
PML-N chief Nawaz Sharif has revisited the party policy regarding Sindhi nationalists just to deject pro-PPP stance in Sindh, and to meet the challenge, the PPP had to come up with a different strategy.
The PPP’s popularity graph has been severely affected in Sindh due to the poor performance of its government, especially the withdrawal of the magistracy system under MQM’s pressure. The Sindhi-speaking community had strongly reacted to the PPP government for its U-turn on the local government system.
Traditional PPP rivals – Sindhi nationalists – tried to take advantage of the situation and became active against the party on the issue and for the first time during the PPP’s tenure, the entire Sindh demonstrated against the party and its government by positively responding to a strike call given by the nationalists. But now, there is a general support for Dr Mirza in Sindh.
He is emerging as a nationalist leader in the province and the immediate desired result has been achieved with a halt to the agitation started by nationalist parties on the local government system issue.
The PPP sources said the strategy seemed successful as the spouse of NA speaker had emerged as traditional Sindhi nationalist leader managing to gain popularity due to his anti-MQM stance.
Mirza, who has painted himself as an anti-MQM leader with his fiery press conferences against the party, received a warm welcome on his return from Badin to Karachi on Friday.
Per details, activists and supporters of political parties having influence among Sindhi, Balochi, Pashto and Punjabi-speaking communities were present from Gaghar Phattak to Malir along the National Highway and also from the airport to Lyari to welcome the “Sindhi tiger”.
Among these political parties and ethnic groups were leaders of the Awami National Party (ANP) Sindh, Ameer Banbhro-led Sindh National Party (SNP) and Irfanullah Marwat-led Punjabi Pakhtun Ittehad.
Party insiders privy to the development said the entry of PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari in practical politics and President Zardari’s announcement regarding Bilwal’s maiden election field were the part of ‘a new strategy’. The party has already started preparing for the next general election by making decisions in this context and the changing political climate has forced the PPP to use its ‘triumph cards’ before time.
Dr Mirza’s new role would help the PPP win back support in Sindh, as the people generally criticise the PPP for its policies and poor performance, but they support Dr Mirza in private gatherings.
Similarly, the party leadership is optimistic that Dr Mirza’s ‘new appearance’ would also benefit the PPP regain its popularity in the remaining areas of Sindh, especially among the Sindhi-speaking people, who have remained staunch supporters of the party.
They said that though the PML-Q was at present a coalition partner of the PPP in the Centre, Sindh and Balochistan and PPP was completely relying on it to save its government, but the PML-Q was in fact unreliable.
That was why the PPP had come up with a strategy of playing to the people’s emotions and had started supporting the creation of new provinces in Punjab, the leaders added.
