Imran fears defeat in AJK polls: Bilawal

ISLAMABAD: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Tuesday apparently closed the door for return in the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), saying that the PPP never expressed any desire to return to the opposition parties alliance. “Our office-bearers have resigned from the alliance and we never expressed the desire to return into the PDM or sit with them and why this question was being asked repeatedly that when we will return into the PDM,” he said this while talking to the media after visiting the residence of journalist Asad Ali Toor to express solidarity with him.

Bilawal said there were two important points as when the PDM was formed then there was an action plan in which there was a protest movement, long march, no-confidence motion and if all these failed then there was the option of resignations from assemblies. The PDM was not formed for Chit Chat,” he said.

He said the office of Shahid Khan Abbasi in the PDM was not permanent but temporary and similarly the office-bearers of the PDM were temporary on rotation basis as like MRD, where practical decisions were taken on consensus.

Bilawal said unless they come back to the action plan till then the PPP narrative and strategy was clear and would stick to its narrative and strategy. In another statement, Bilawal said that Imran Khan was clearly seeing his defeat in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) elections and therefore, they wanted to postpone elections there.

Bilawal said that PPP would resist passage of anti-people budget with full force. He said that making tall claims is the habit of Prime Minister Imran Khan. The PPP chief said that the poverty ratio in Pakistan is proving wrong the claims of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government regarding economic growth. Pakistani nation has already rejected the ‘photoshopped’ economic development of Pakistan, he added.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, while expressing concerns over the diminishing agriculture of the country, held Prime Minister Imran Khan responsible for the unfair distribution of water to crucial areas of Sindh.

“The government was entirely responsible for placing Pakistan’s agriculture at stake, while the impact caused by the downfall of crops has painted a clear picture of the harsh conditions that will befall the country soon,” he said in a statement on Tuesday.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the nation had not faced such an acute water crisis in the past 60 years. He also emphasised upon the dire effects this preferential distribution can lead to an irreversible bump in poverty and inflation.

“The cotton crop of the country has already declined according to the statistics. Shockingly, the puppet prime minister and his government are unable to realise that thousands of lives will be affected since those living in rural areas are highly dependent on crop production,” Bilawal said. He questioned who will provide them with food, water, and their daily necessities. “We will not remain mum while countless of people die of malnutrition,” he said.

The PPP chairman also expressed his disbelief over the exaggerated corruption statistics presented by the government. He said Imran Khan has been delivering false facts since the day he assumed power. “The nation is well aware of his U-turns and overstatement of reality – especially when it comes to complimenting his government,” he said.

The PPP chairman further highlighted that the poverty rate is over 21%, and these numbers do not show any economic growth. “If the economic growth rate has increased, why is PTI cutting the budget of higher education institutions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa?” he inquired, adding that “You cannot photoshop reality.”

He said that the international community estimates the poverty rate at 40% and this is an extremely alarming. “Imran Khan’s must leave office if he wants to eliminate inflation, unemployment, and corruption from the country. Enough is enough. We can no longer risk the future of Pakistan,” he said.

He pointed out that the basis of Imran Khan’s failure is his lack of experience. Running the country is not the same as playing cricket, and the current PM is entirely unaware of economic problems. He does not know how to run the country. “With half a century of experience PPP is the only party that can correct the country’s economic direction,” he said.