Nawaz furthering US mindset in region: Zardari

Vows to safeguard Pak interests; claims CPEC is his brainchild; Imran has no interest in solving Pakhtuns’ problems

PESHAWAR: Pakistan People's Party (PPP) Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said on Sunday that Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif was furthering the American mindset in the region. He underlined the need for having cordial relations with neighbours and expressed his resolve that he would not allow anyone to impose America's war on Pakistan.

Addressing a reception at the residence of former federal minister Arbab Alamgir here, he accused Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif of being unaware of the harm being done to the country as a result of getting US dollars. Zardari recalled that he gave identity and powers to the Pakhtuns during his party's government.

Asif Zardari said he would merge the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (Fata) with the KP province if the PPP came into power. He also promised to increase the amount of financial assistance for deserving people through the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP).

Asif Zardari also recalled that his government awarded the National Finance Commission (NFC) Award to the provinces. He said that he also transferred his powers to parliament and later to the provinces as he wanted to strengthen the federating units and make them self-sufficient.

The PPP leader asserted that the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor (CPEC) was his brainchild. He said his party would ensure that the provinces benefited from the mega project if it was voted to power in the next general election. "After coming into power, we will unblock the identity cards of the Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) and other Pakhtuns," he pledged. He recalled that he appointed the governor of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa from Fata when he was the president of Pakistan to remove the sense of deprivation in the tribal population.

Asif Zardari said that America and India were present in Afghanistan when his party was in power but it didn't sour relations with neighbours. He said he didn't canvass for the PPP during the last election campaign but now he would go door-to-door to seek votes for party candidates.

The PPP co-chairman said that the federal government had failed to deliver as the country's debt had doubled in recent years. He said his party workers would not leave the polling stations before getting the election results. He also warned against any attempt to rig the polls.

Criticising the federal government, Asif Zardari maintained that those claiming to overcome the energy crisis had been unable to take tangible steps to give relief to the people braving hours long power cuts.

Coming down hard on the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief, he said that Imran Khan didn't have any interest in solving the problems facing the Pakhtuns as he was using KP as a springboard to gain political support in Punjab. He added that Imran Khan couldn't bring about any change in KP let alone running the entire country.

Asif Zardari added that the Pakhtuns offered unmatched sacrifices for the country, but they were still faced with a host of problems and were living a difficult life. "The PPP leadership will spare no effort to mitigate the sufferings of the Pakhtuns," he pledged.