Thirteen years is a long time, particularly in politics, but 13 year after Benazir Bhutto, the first woman prime minister of a Muslim majority country, was assassinated in Rawalpindi her legacy appears to have lost none of its relevance or potency.

Benazir, the impeccable politician, had always talked of democratic principles and sought the moral high ground. In or out of power, she was consistent in her commitment to protection of all freedoms guaranteed in the Constitution. She respected diversity and aimed for an inclusive, pluralistic nation. She courageously stood against religious extremism and challenged military interventions in democratic governance.

Many, particularly among the faithful in her Pakistan Peoples Party, hope that the current chairperson Bilawal Bhutto has inherited more than her name and can lead it to the same heights of popularity and power as she did. Others are not so confident. The sceptics says Benazir’s true legacy has been brushed aside and accuse her party of political opportunism.

Afrasiab Khattak, senior politician, and human rights activist, says the fact is the powers that be have not been kind to any of the political parties or their leaders in the country. Almost all mainstream parties have been weakened and their leaders discredited. Since 2014, he says, the de facto power centre has been busy trying to reconfigure the system. To this end, all powers at the disposal of the state have been used to demonise political leaders, persecute them and discredit them. The PPP and the Bhuttos, he says, have been no exception.

Secondly, says Khattak, the PPP is in the process of a transition. Its young leader Bilawal Bhutto is gradually strengthening his grip over the party’s affairs. “It is only natural that this is taking some time for him to reach out to the entire country. He is attractive to the youth bulge that everybody is talking about. He has already reached out to various sections of the society.”

“Look at the history and legacy of the party and you notice that what people see as the Bhutto tradition was a willingness to challenge the social and political status quo,” says Afrasiab Khattack. He says Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had challenged the dictatorship of Ayub Khan and the system that supported the dictatorship. This had galvanized the masses behind him in an uprising against military rule in late 1960s. Later, Benazir did the same in late ’80s. “I think Bilawal has yet to do that. I believe he has yet to fully connect with the legacy of Benazir Bhutto by challenging the rule of generals,” he says.

Khattak says there can be no doubt that the PPP has certain achievements to its credit since the assassination of Benazir Bhutto. These include the passage of the 18th Amendment and empowerment of provincial governments and legislatures; and the agreement on the eighth National Finance Commission Award giving the provinces a larger share in the national resources, thereby strengthening democracy and federalism. Unfortunately, he says, these gains were reversed in the creeping coup that started in 2014. “The PPP after Benazir has yet to put up the type of resistance for which it was known in the past. Of course, it has to weigh the importance of its democratic struggle against its interests in the province of Sindh. This is a dilemma the party has yet to overcome,” he says.

If Bilawal asserts himself and follows in the tradition of her mother in challenging the real powers and rulers, he will fire the imagination of the youth and provide the party a popular base.

Khattak says if Bilawal asserts himself and follows in the tradition of her mother in challenging the real powers and rulers, he can fire the imagination of the youth and provide the party a popular base. If, on the other hand, he warns, the young leader chooses to make deals with the ‘selectors’ he can really harm the future prospects of the party and the Bhutto legacy.

Journalist Muhammad Ziauddin, however, says that people have to be more patient with Bilawal. “We have to allow more time to the new leadership of the PPP before we judge their approach. Bilawal cannot be compared yet to his mother. We see that Benazir, besides carrying the legacy of ZAB, made her own legacy too.” Ziauddin points out that in certain ways Benazir had made her own way and distance herself from what ZAB was expected to have done in the circumstances. This gave her an opportunity to make her own way, he says. “We see a qualitative difference in the struggle of Benazir and her father. It was partly because ZAB had been an insider whereas Benazir started as an outsider to the system. She had to discover her way around. She had to suffer a lot, including going to jail and facing exile.”

Zia says the party is a lot different today from what it used to be under Benazir. The struggle of Asif Zardari was different in term of quality and intellect. “Zardari was a different person. From what I personally know, I believe Benazir would not have liked to see him succeed her. And we can see that Bilawal was too young to succeed. He has not personally suffered much in politics yet. He can be called a boy born with a silver spoon… He has an opportunity to lead this party.”

Ziauddin says the next couple of years will see Bilawal make crucial choices that will define his style and allow people to judge him in terms of how he is carrying the legacy of his predecessors in the party. “His handling of tough situations will be the litmus test,” Ziauddin concludes.

The author is a staff reporter. He can be reached at vaqargillani@gmail.com