KARACHI: Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday said that policing should be done on the border of Afghanistan so that no one could enter the country easily unlike past.

Also, PPP Chairman said that his party would welcome Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) to hold a rally in Karachi and posed question as to 'what is the reason for holding the rally after such a long hiatus?'

He said that the PPP has already shown the PDM a political way to overthrow an undemocratic government in a democratic manner. Talking to media while visiting various parts of Karachi to see the Sindh Government's development work in the city, PPP chairman said that in the face of Geo-political changes in neighbouring Afghanistan, policing should be done on the border of Afghanistan so that no one could enter the country easily unlike they have done in the past.

He visited areas such as Hassan Square, Gharibabad, Liaquatabad, Sindhi Hotel, Choona Depot, Golimar, Gulbahar, Lasbela, Patel Para, Dhoraji, PECHS, and Bahadurabad. During his visit to these different areas, Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari participated in the tree planting drive at Kidney Hill Park in Dhoraji, inspected the drainage project at PECHS, and visited Ghulam Rasool Terrace Garden. Bilawal met with shopkeepers at Empress Market and also took selfies with them. On the occasion, the shopkeepers gifted dried fruits to the Chairman PPP and then narrated a few of their problems to him.

Taking note of their problems, Bilawal issued instructions for their immediate resolution, and proceeded towards Seaview for the Urban Forest Project. During a media talk on the occasion, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the people of Karachi have now recognised the true face of PTI and MQM, and the people of the city of Quaid are now ready to give PPP a chance.

Chairman PPP said that he and the PPP will strive and work to make Karachi a world-class city, and do so despite having limited resources and a lack of funding and investment in the city from the federal government. "I visited District Central, which has been under the control of the MQM for a long time," stated Chairman PPP. "Now there will be none of the historical impediments to the working of the Water and Sewerage Board, and development will be for the people. I saw for myself Sindh Sanitation workers labouring hard to clear the backlog of garbage," he added.

He further said that work is in full swing to provide a comfortable environment for the people, whether it is recreational projects like Kidney Hill Park, Urban forests, People's Squares, or other development projects underway.

"The federal government has snatched jobs from 16,000 families," said Chairman PPP. "This is not the first time that injustice has been done to these affected families, as they were made unemployed during the 1997 government of Nawaz Sharif. He further said that their jobs were then restored by the parliament. "I appeal to the Sindh government to provide legal assistance to the affected people by giving them legal aid. The court can also be approached," he said.

Chairman PPP said that unfortunately, there is a constant stream of people losing their jobs. Earlier, 10,000 families of steel mills and FIA officers were also laid off, laying bare the blatant lies of 10 million jobs that were promised by this government. Sine this government has formed though, people have only lost their jobs, he added.

Replying to another question, Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that there is no denying that there are problems in Karachi, but people also can't deny that the PPP government in Sindh and Chief Minister Murad Shah and his team are working with great sincerity. He said that the PPP has always believed in power at the grassroots level, and we are proud that the local bodies in Sindh have completed their term. This is proof of PPP's democratic credentials.

"We also allowed our opponents in Karachi to complete the term," said Chairman PPP. "PTI has not allowed local bodies to function in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, while in Punjab, contempt of court is being done by not restoring local bodies."

He further said that the issue of census and legislation regarding local bodies would be completed and then we would be ready for elections. Replying to a question about the politics of Prime Minister Imran Khan and MQM in Karachi, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that their politics was such that they don't want to work themselves and don't allow others to work either.

"Their intentions are not clean," stated Chairman PPP. "They are not serious about the people of this city, whereas PPP has been seriously working for the people. Khan's coalition government has not laid a single brick in the city, nor increased a drop of water, or added one megawatt of electricity in the last three years. The federal government has not even fulfilled its promise of a package of Rs1100 billion," he said.

Replying to a question on the supply of water to Sindh by Irsa, the PPP chairman said that the manner in which Irsa was plundering Sindh's water was in front of everyone. This is a matter of humanity and human rights. Water scarcity not only harms agricultural crops, it also has a bad effect on the economy of the whole country.

Replying to a question about former Sindh Chief Minister Syed Qaim Ali Shah, he said that during the tenure of the former Chief Minister, historic work was done in the province, which is in front of everyone. This includes Thar Coal and SRSO. Qaim Ali Shah started these projects and now they are being carried forward by Murad Ali Shah. Talking about the issue of the electronic voting machine, Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the reigning government will face defeat in the next elections.

He further said that when you cannot run RTS, how will you manage electronic voting machines? A country which suffers from energy shortages and isn't completely electrified can't be serious of trying to implement electronic voting machines.

Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, PPP Sindh General Secretary, Local Government Minister, Administrator Karachi and others were also present on the occasion.

Copyright Business Recorder, 2021