PMLQ needs to be made an offer it can’t refuse: Bilawal

KARACHI/MULTAN:Chairman of PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is hopeful the prime minister will face defeat in the no-trust vote in the National Assembly, like the surprise pulled off by making Yousaf Raza Gilani successful in the complex and difficult Senate elections. In order to ensure that PMLQ support the no-confidence motion, he said the PMLQ needs to be made an offer it can't refuse.

Talking in Geo’s morning show, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said the PPP firmly believes in democratic norms and will not use any non-democratic means to remove Imran Khan. The long march, he said, will be followed by a no-trust motion in the NA.

He said PPP’s Co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari is holding negotiations with the opposition, which is unified on employing a no-trust motion against the prime minister. Holding cards close to his chest, Bilawal claimed to spring a surprise for Imran Khan during the no-confidence motion, as the PPP did in the case of Yousaf Raza Gilani’s success in the Senate.

He said Imran Khan is left with two options, either to tender resignation or dissolve the assemblies and brace for the elections or wait for the PPP’s next move. Bilawal said they are not after the PM’s office but require an interim government with the mandate to hold fresh elections. Regarding support of PMLQ, the PPP chairman was clear they would not support us without a substantive offer of their liking. Their support is imperative for the success in the numbers game, he said. He described negotiations with the PMLN as positive but declared it a big task for the PPP to back PMLN’s Shehbaz Sharif as the interim prime minister. However, he said the PPP is prepared to let go of its short term goals for transparent elections. The PPP is ready to make that sacrifice and expects the PMLN to also focus on the greater good of the country. On the question of Nawaz Sharif’s return to the country, Bilawal said that is purely an internal PMLN issue and that of Nawaz Sharif’s assessment, the PPP has no issues with that.

Bilawal said the Establishment’s role in the country’s politics is known to all but we will be happy if they stick to neutrality. He said so far there has been no individual complaint from any member against the Establishment and if any such thing emerges, we will go to the public on that. He said it is incumbent for all institutions to remain within their constitutionally-defined ambits and individuals are not allowed to tarnish the role of the entire institution.

Earlier, a charged gathering of thousands of people at Bahawalpur bypass in Multan, Thursday demanded the ouster of Prime Minister Imran Khan due to his failure to deliver, create a Seraiki province and fulfil his promises made with people during elections in 2018. They welcomed PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and his long march in Multan by raising slogans of ‘Go Niazi go, and demand for a Seraiki province.

Addressing the charged gathering, Bilawal said ‘selected’ Prime Minister Imran Khan had only two options: either resign from his seat or face dissolution of his government through no-confidence motion in assembly.

He said the PPP would restore student unions in Punjab also after being elected to power. He said the puppet Imran Khan could not stop the people of Wasaib from getting a separate province. He raised slogans with the participants of the Awami Long March, "Ghinsoon, Ghinsoon, Sooba Ghinsoon" [We will get a separate province].

Addressing a public gathering in Bahawalpur, Bilawal said overwhelming response from the public and the PPP workers showed that they had rejected the selected [Prime Minister Imran Khan] now.

At Channi Goth, Ahmadpur East, Khan Bela and other areas in the Bahawalpur district, he said time had arrived to oust the selected prime minister. He said the PPP was a democratic party and it had started the long march to oust the incompetent premier.

Speaking in Rahim Yar Khan earlier, the PPP chairman said “no-confidence motion is our democratic weapon which we are using against this government. I am sure the incumbent government has stopped functioning, as Imran Khan has brought disaster, instead of change, in the country”.

He told a gathering at Chowk Bahadurpur: “People jumping off the sinking ship are a clear proof of it that the moment of reckoning has arrived.”

He said that in Sindh as well as in Punjab, the way large crowds of people welcomed the march participants showed people were waiting for ouster of the government. He said the south Punjab was also wanted the PTI government sent packing. He believed that the public would give him a warm welcome in Islamabad also, which would be a no-confidence against the government.

He said before the 2018 general elections, “a lollypop of south Punjab province was given to the area people. But, instead of putting it into practice, an attempt was made to befool people of south Punjab by setting up a so-called secretariat”.

He claimed that the reduction in petrol, diesel and electricity prices was, in fact, the result of his long march. “They are claiming record production of rice and maize. However, despite importing these commodities, their prices have reached the highest level in the history of the country,” Bilawal said.

The PPP chairman said the crisis of urea fertiliser was created by two federal ministers and they made crores of rupees, and farmers had to suffer the consequences.

PPP South Punjab President Makhdoom Ahmed Mahmood, addressing the gathering, termed the reception accorded to Bilawal Bhutto in Rahim Yar Khan historic. He said the opposition parties should have filed a no-confidence motion against the government two years ago, so that people would have not to bear with unprecedented price-hike. He said that PPP would achieve record breaking achievements in the whole of south Punjab after which a new era of prosperity would begin in the region.

Other PPP leaders also addressed the public meeting. Earlier, Bilawal visited Taj Chowk Sadiqabad. The participants in the long march were warmly welcomed by MNA Makhdoom Murtaza Mahmood and MPA Mumtaz Chang, who brought them to Chowk Bahadurpur in a procession of hundreds of motorcycles, cars and buses.