PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari stated on Tuesday that his party will assist the incoming administration on a “issue to issue basis” and in the event of significant votes, like the prime minister’s election, but he would not be joining the federal cabinet.
Following a two-day meeting chaired by former president Asif Ali Zardari, the PPP’s Central Executive Committee (CEC) made these statements.
Following the victory of independent candidates endorsed by the PTI in the National Assembly polls, which resulted in at least 93 seats, the PPP and PML-N started intensive negotiations last week to work out a power-sharing arrangement for the national and Punjab parliament.
Raoof Hasan, a spokesman for the PTI, declared that the MWM and the Centre would form an alliance. “And we will form a coalition with the Jamaat-i-Islami in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa for reserved seats,” he declared at a press conference following his meeting with PTI founder Imran Khan, who is currently imprisoned at Adiala Jail.
During a news conference today, Bilawal stated that the PPP’s CEC meeting covered the nation’s current state of affairs, political stability challenges, and worries that Pakistan may be approaching a crisis point.
He declared, “The PPP’s main decision is to pull Pakistan out of this crisis.”
Bilawal declared, “The PML-N and independents had greater numbers to form a government in the Center. The reality is that the PPP does not have a mandate to form a government in the federation and due to this I will not be putting myself forward for the candidacy of prime minister.”
He pointed out that the PTI has declared it would not hold talks with the PPP, therefore ruling out the prospect of an independent-led government.
PPP has decided that while we are not in the position to join the federal government, nor are we interested in taking ministries in such a setup, we also don’t want to see political chaos in the country. We don’t want to see a perpetual crisis in our country – Chairman PPP… pic.twitter.com/tJvNMIQjLR
— PPP (@MediaCellPPP) February 13, 2024
“The PPP has determined that we would not be interested in accepting ministries in such a system and that we are either unable or not in a position to join the federal government ourselves.
He emphasized, “But we also don’t want to see political chaos in the nation.”
Bilawal also noted that his party sought to restore political stability and ran on a platform centered on matters of popular concern in the Feb. 8 elections.
In order to ensure that a government is formed and political stability is restored, he stated, “To that end, the PPP will be willing to support the case of important votes — a candidate of the Pakistani prime minister — and issue to issue basis.”
Accordingly, Bilawal went on, the PPP has made the decision to set up a committee to discuss matters like the budget, legislation, and the premiership with other political parties on a “issue-to-issue basis.”
The PPP leader did, however, state that he preferred to see his father serve as president. He declared, “And I’m not saying this because he’s my father; I’m saying this because the nation is currently experiencing a severe crisis, and Asif Ali Zardari is the one who can put out this fire.”
Bilawal emphasized further that although his party was concerned about the election results, it has chosen to accept them “in the larger interest of the country.” He stated that PPP members had expressly brought up concerns about fairness in their discussions with Asif Ali Zardari, and the latter had promised to take these concerns seriously.
Regarding the PTI’s position on communication with other political parties, Bilawal stated that the Imran-led group was taking decisions that were detrimental to democracy.
Saying that we won’t speak to anyone, please refrain from doing so. However, why did voters choose you? “A political force must listen to others. They voted for you to solve their problems,” he remarked.
The former foreign minister went on to say that in order to stop dividing politics, all political groups have to consider the nation. “They shouldn’t only be concerned with themselves; otherwise, the nation’s enemies would try to take advantage of this crisis.”
“A tango requires two,” he continued.
According to Bilawal, the PPP has once again decided to use the phrase “Pakistan khappay” solely for the benefit of the nation and its citizens.
The PPP revealed the identities of the six members of its committee responsible for liaising and coordinating with political parties through a social media post later in the day.
KARACHI: Chairman PPP @BBhuttoZardari has been pleased to constitute the following committee for contact and coordination with political parties.@QamarKairaPPP @MuradAliShahPPP
Nawab Sanaullah Zehri
Shuja (Shazi) Khan @SaeedGhani1 @NadeemAfzalChanNotification in this…
— PPP (@MediaCellPPP) February 13, 2024
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