Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Wednesday unveiled his party’s 10-point “welfare” agenda ahead of the upcoming general elections, making tall promises to ensure “relief” for the masses if granted a majority.
Addressing a gathering at Garhi Khuda Bakhsh to mark the 16th death anniversary of his mother, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, Bhutto-Zardari reiterated that the people’s welfare was his priority. In this regard, he vowed, the PPP—if granted sufficient numbers to form the next government—would double the salaries of all government employees within five years; provide free electricity up to 300 units for the impoverished, with a focus on developing renewable “green energy parks” in each district.
He further promised to ensure education for all Pakistanis and provide free healthcare nationwide. Taking a page from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan’s 2018 campaign, he vowed to provide 3 million homes for those impacted by floods, as well as the poor. He also promised to expand the scope of the Benazir Income Support Program; introduce similar programs for farmers, laborers, and fresh graduates; and launch a ‘Bhook Mitao Program’ aimed at curtailing food insecurity.
The PPP chairman also continued, per routine, his sniping at political opponents, with the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz) once again his primary target. Without naming names, he alleged some politicians were relying on “others” to win the upcoming polls, claiming the PPP’s sole desire was to secure the public’s mandate. He also said he would face all his political opponents in Lahore, where he has submitted nomination forms for a seat in the National Assembly.
“I had told my team I wanted to contest from Lahore; I’ll take the battle to Lahore. Let’s see what happens,” he said. “Is it Lahore’s destiny that the same person will be installed for the fourth time?” he said, in an apparent reference to PMLN leader Nawaz Sharif, who is his party’s favored candidate for the Prime Minister’s Office if it secures a majority in the Feb. 8, 2024 polls.
“Our paths are different than those who we were in government with for 16 months,” he said, referring to the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) government in which he was the foreign minister.
Bhutto-Zardari also addressed persistent questions over his party’s candidate for the premiership—his father, PPP Co-Chairman Asif Ali Zardari had earlier claimed there were several aspirants—saying he would seek the support of the PPP and the Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) headed by his father to contest as the party’s candidate for premiership.