Bilawal Bhutto keeps economic progress top priority

Liaquat Ali

Islamabad: Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari this week stressed the need for the country to stay away from the politics of world powers and instead focus on resolving its own economic problems to achieve its international goals.

Addressing the National Assembly, Bilawal said that Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman himself pushed his party into a blind alley. He also called for collective efforts by the world powers to root out the menace of terrorism.

“First of all, there is the need to bring political stability in Pakistan. In order to bring political stability, the next government and opposition [after the next general elections] will have to play a responsible role while sticking to the Charter of Democracy.”

Bilawal, who is also the chairman of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), stressed the need for devising a comprehensive road map for achieving political and economic stability by engaging the reconcilable opposition members.

“I will try to do politics in a positive way so that we can move towards resolving the problems of this country. But the correct identification [of the root causes] is also necessary to resolve these problems,” he continued.

The PPP chairman said that the PTI chairman himself had pushed his party into a blind alley following the May 9 attacks and vandalism at the military installations and martyrs’ monuments through his stubbornness.

Time and again, he continued, the PTI chief was asked from the parliamentary forums to disassociate himself from the May 9 incidents but he paid no heed and consequently his party was in trouble today.

“On May 9, the PTI protesters attacked the Jinnah House, military installations, the General Headquarters, and the monuments of the martyrs,” he said, adding: “Those involved in the violent attacks do not deserve any leniency.”

He asked whether attackers would have been spared in the name of democracy had such attacks been carried out in the US or the UK. He pointed out that former US president Donald Trump faced backlash after his supporters attacked the Congress.

“There is no politics, the May 9 incidents were acts of terrorism. The PPP will never defend those who had attacked the military installations, sensitive places and monuments of the martyrs,” he made it clear.

“There are provisions in the law that those involved in such heinous acts can be tried in the military courts, and it is also the responsibility of parliament, government and judiciary to establish the writ of the state at every cost.”

He also accused the PTI chief of hatching a conspiracy against the International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme. He recalled that the finance ministers of Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa were also involved in the conspiracy.

Bilawal thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and Finance Minister Ishaq Dar for allocating funds in the budget for the reconstruction and rehabilitation of the flood-affected areas and mobilising the resources for instant rescue and relief of the people.

“I want to thank Finance Minister Ishaq Dar. We are also grateful to Prime Minister Shahbaz Sharif. There were the promises of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, which we see are being fulfilled,” he added.

“We are very grateful that post-flood reconstruction is under way. It is now included in the budget,” he said. He also called for changes in different sectors of the country to combat climate change.