Islamabad, Pakistan: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is the son of “Eik Zardari Sab pay Bhari” (Only Zardari can influence everybody). He is also the son of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto and grandson of Zulifqar Ali Bhutto. He represents over 55 years’ legacy of Pakistani politics but nowadays behaves like a loser.
Bilawal who is an integral part of the led government in the Centre is facing an existentialist crisis in Punjab and it looks like his party is ‘thrown and condemned’ and the person who defeated Bilawal Bhutto in Lahore is the face of Pakistani politics as the Federal Minister of Information while PMLN leadership in Punjab is becoming habitual of taunting PPP’s Governor Sardar Saleem Haider Khan whenever it deems fit to PMLN. Even so, Information Minister Punjab Azma Bokhari categorically said that Sardar Saleem Haider Khan should leave the Governorship and join PTI. Cracking jokes over the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) is the norm in Punjab’s cabinet while his Sindh government is not receiving any share of promotion at state-run media under the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting rather a slow by a steady campaign against PPP could be smelled in the media allegedly planned by PMLN government. In all these circumstances, the PPP is taking a position that it would not support banning any political party such as PTI that is habitual of attacking the capital city of Islamabad and abusing national institutions. This position of PPP may help it to portray itself as a ‘champion of parliamentary politics’ but compromising parliamentary politics as reckless conduct of the PTI-led provincial government of KPK is raising the question that power conferred to provinces under the 18th Constitutional Amendment is too daring to enable provincial governments to physically attack the Federation. PPP’s position against any attempt to clamp the Governor’s Rule in KPK and criticizing a possible ban on PTI is serving those who have been against the 18th Amendment from the very day it was introduced. No the conduct of Chief Minister KPK Ali Amin Gandapur confirms that criticism against extraordinary administrative powers delegated to provinces under the 18th Amendment is practically weakening the Federation.
Whatever PTI has been doing since it was voted out from power in April 2022 cannot be accepted in any Parliamentary democratic country. Using Afghan nationals to disrupt law and order in Pakistan, creating chaos and disorder when foreign delegates are in the country (Belarusian President was in Islamabad when PTI attacked Islamabad while using provincial administration of KPK), attacking military installations (May 9, 2023), killing Rangers and policemen (On November 24-25-26, 2024), running campaigns against the state of Pakistan, writing letters to the UN to penalize the country on human rights issues, writing letters to IMF to stop payments to Pakistan, writing letters to US Congressmen and UK lawmakers to ask their countries to take punitive actions against Pakistan are some of ‘services’ of PTI against Pakistan and banning such party should be a service to the country instead of let this party to play havoc with country. Why the PPP is taking a position against the possible banning of PTI is a question that should be answered by Bilawal Bhutto because PTI’s act justifies to review 18th Constitutional Amendment that has provided exceptional powers to provinces and these powers (economic as well as administration) are now used by PTI against Federation.
Political analysts believe that Bilawal Bhutto is losing politically by not responding to what his party is facing in Punjab taking an absurd position in favor of PTI and actually putting the 18th Amendment in danger. Who knows what PTI and Gandapur are doing by designed to harm the 18th Amendment?
