Shehbaz stance taken as PMLN policy: Bilawal

SUKKUR/ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said on Wednesday Shehbaz Sharif is the Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly and the PMLN president, thus the PPP would consider his stance and statements as official PML-N policy and conduct its politics according to that.

He said that the PPP was not answerable to PML-N Vice President Maryam Nawaz or PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif and that his stance remained unchanged.

Addressing a press conference in Badin, Bilawal was responding to a question from a reporter on Maryam's recent comments that the PPP had not responded to the show cause notice sent to it and had shown her support to comments by Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) Secretary General Shahid Khaqan Abbasi. Abbasi had said on Tuesday that there was no place for the PPP within the opposition alliance until it restored the trust it had betrayed. He said that the PDM had sought a response from the PPP, which Bilawal had torn into pieces. “We had asked for a response. Join together the torn pieces of the show cause notice, read it and give us the clarification we had sought,” Abbasi had said. The PPP chairman acknowledged that he had torn the show cause notice and there was no change in his stance on the PDM. “We are not answerable to Maryam or Mian Sahab. We are answerable to the PPP and the PPP’s workers and we think the real joy will be in doing politics together with the PPP’s workers,” Bilawal said.

He added that the PPP respected Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and the two parties had had a “good relationship and contact”. Bilawal said, however, that the PPP was engaging in politics based on its vision, principles, with respect and “we don’t change our stance.” He called on those who wanted democracy to flourish, civilian supremacy and actually wanted to oppose Prime Minister Imran Khan to “instead of opposing the PPP, our friends in the opposition should target the government.”Bilawal also said he was grateful to the Sindh government, law department and the journalist community for the bill for the protection of journalists being approved by the committee in the Sindh Assembly. “This will hopefully become law after being passed by the Sindh Assembly. It is with great sadness that we have to pass such bills in the 21st century, when you should get all protection according to the Constitution.” He condemned the swiftness with which journalists were being targeted and subjected to injustice and said Sindh Information Minister Nasir Shah was constantly engaged in efforts to follow-up and punish anyone involved in injustice with journalists. Bilawal said he wanted business activities and development in Sindh, however, “We will not accept anyone’s hooliganism. Whoever that is, we will not accept anyone’s hooliganism whether these housing societies or anyone else.

“Bilawal also talked at length about issues and problems related to water and said there was a need to create a new consensus on distribution of water based on equality and justice. He said the PPP was ready to fight on the issue of injustice in water distribution on every level and also outlined measures by the Sindh government to combat the issue such as lining of canals. He also addressed the security situation in the province and credited the Sindh police and law enforcers for the increase in peace and security. Expressing his “full confidence” in the Sindh police capacity and capability to maintain peace and security, he called for all institutions to work together to improve the law and order situation.

Sindh police have the full potential to restore peace in the province,” Bilawal said. “The interior minister Sheikh Rasheed is ready to give a lecture about another province but is not ready to protect journalists in Islamabad.” Bilawal directed Sohail Anwar Sial, Sindh Irrigation Minister to resolve the shortage of water issue of the people of Mathali and said that a new consensus based distribution of water is required.

Meanwhile, Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) demanded not to use the name ‘Pakistan Democratic Movement’ without the PPP. “Like-minded” people should not use the name ‘PDM’ without PPP which is the party that has laid the foundation of this platform,” said Secretary General PPP Syed Nayyar Hussain Bukhari on Wednesday.

Bukhari said that PPP, as a political party, believes in mutual respect in politics and defamatory attitude is intolerable. He said that PMLN and JUI’s bipartisanship is hurting democratic forces. “Maulana Fazlur Rehman should tell us that who is benefitting from the criticism of PPP which is the leading party of PDM,” he asked. Bukhari said that on one hand, Shehbaz Sharif invites the PPP at a dinner and on the other, his party’s second tier leadership hurls accusations at the same PPP. He said that the PPP was right to think that the people, using the name of PDM, were escaping from the action plan to get rid of the rulers and were also avoiding taking part in the elections.

The PPP secretary general said that the IMF backed people are preparing to impose more heavy taxes on the people in the budget and the PPP is opposing the government which has brought the tsunami of inflation and unemployment. Nayyar Hussain Bokhari said the PPP will continue its struggle for constitutional, economic and human rights of the citizens of Pakistan and for strengthening democracy. Talking to Geo News show ‘Aaj Shahzeb Khanzada Kay Sath’, PMLN Punjab President Rana Sanaullah said that there was no grouping and differences in the party. He said that difference opinion emerges in meetings but decisions are taken unanimously. Denying the opinion, which was being attributed to Shehbaz Sharif, Sana said that the PMLN president had not uttered such words for the past 40 years, so why would he do now. He said that even a single word of Maryam Nawaz was not out of party or party leadership’s line. He said that the PDM, not the PMLN, issued showcase notice to the PPP, and it was not Shehbaz Sharif to decide to bring the PPP in the PDM fold. This decision will be taken by majority in PDM heads meeting, he added.

Rana Sanaullah said that Shehbaz Sharif was the president of PMLN and the president does not represent a group but the whole party. He said that policy statement in PMLN will always come from Quaid who is Nawaz Sharif. He said that Shehbaz Sharif has followed narrative of Nawaz Sharif more than us.