No one can become PM by hitting a sixer: Bilawal

Says in 2018, PPP will be in power and Nawaz in Jail over PanamaLeaks; party stands by govt on Kashmir issue

ISLAMABAD: Chairman Pakistan People’s Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Wednesday said that no one could become the prime minister by hitting a sixer.

He said that after the 2018 elections, the PPP would be in power and Nawaz Sharif would be in jail on the issue of PanamLeaks. He was talking to newsmen here on Wednesday outside the Parliament House.

In an apparent hit on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan without naming him, he said, “We do not play politics on Kashmir policy. Some of our friends did not do the right thing by boycotting the session.”

He said, “Politics are very strategic and you have to put the national interest first and if you do not place this on priority, you cannot do it as you have given space to Nawaz Sharif to hide behind the Kashmir issue and democracy to avoid the Panama issue and accountability. It’s a very immature decision and it’s not cricket that you hit a ball, hit a ball and on hitting a sixer you think that you will become the prime minister. It would not happen as we have to take up this issue with unity.”

To a question, Bilawal said the PanamaLeaks was the world’s biggest corruption scandal. “After the elections of 2018, a PPP man will be in the Prime Minister’s House while Nawaz Sharif will be in jail on the Panama issue,” he added

He said the PPP did not play politics on the Kashmir policy, adding, “We all are united over the issue of Kashmir.”“Some of our friends did not do the right thing by boycotting the session as I was also advised to do so but I rejected it,” he said.

Bilawal chaired the joint meeting of the parliamentary parties of the PPP in the Senate and National Assembly and also witnessed the proceedings of the joint sittings of both the houses of parliament.The PPP chairman said that the All Parties Conference (APC) was called on the demand of Khursheed Shah.

Bilawal said he had given recommendations to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif during the APC and the prime minister had said that we all wanted national unity.  “Pakistan’s enemy is keeping an eye on its weaknesses,” Bilawal added.

The PPP chairman further said the prime minister should appoint a foreign minister and that he had also recommended the formation of a National Security Committee. “India is on the backfoot and if there had been Pakistan’s foreign minister, we would have got benefit,” he added.

The PPP chairman said the prime minister had summoned an All Parties Conference (APC) on Kashmir on the demand of opposition leader Khursheed Shah. “The premier was also given some suggestions in the meeting.” Besides the reinstatement of the National Security Committee, the PPP chairman advised the prime minister to appoint a permanent foreign minister, who could effectively run foreign and diplomatic affairs. “The advice to the prime minister was also given that some people were raising objections to CPEC and their concerns should be removed as he was a prime minister of the whole country and not of Lahore alone,” he added.

Earlier, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari chaired a joint meeting of the parliamentary parties of the PPP of the Senate and National Assembly that was attended by leaders of the opposition in the Senate and National Assembly Aitzaz Ahsan and Syed Khursheed Shah and PPP parliamentarians of both the houses.

The meeting reviewed the strategy on the joint session of parliament.While speaking on the occasion, Bilawal Bhutto said that they should stand with the government on the Kashmir issue. He said if all the parties were not united, it would not send a good message across the border. “Parliament is not anyone’s property and they are there to fight for the rights of people.”Bilawal pronounced that they wanted to tell the world that Pakistan was united on the Kashmir issue.