GARHI KHUDA BUKHSH BHUTTO: Pakistan Peoples Party-Shaheed Bhutto (PPP-SB) chairperson Ghinwa Bhutto has urged people, especially the followers of PPP founder chairman Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, to make a stand for the revival of Bhutto’s philosophy to eliminate corruption and cleanse society of ‘political pollution’ that has plagued politics in the country.

Speaking at a gathering organised by her party near the Bhuttos’ mausoleum in Gharhi Khuda Bukhsh Bhutto to observe the 37th death anniversary of executed leader Z.A. Bhutto on Monday, she said it was time for the followers of Bhutto to stand up with full determination to revive his philosophy.

She addressed the audience amid extraordinary security measures at the PPP-SB gathering venue very close to the mausoleum. The podium and the entire venue around it was heavily guarded by strong police contingents.

Ms Ghinwa said she had been visiting the resting place of Bhutto martyrs and participating in the events related to them for 33 years and would continue to do so in future.

Qadri hanging

Referring to the execution of (former Punjab governor Salman Taseer’s killer) Mumtaz Qadri and the events in Rawalpindi and Islamabad on his Chehlum, the PPP-SB chief she did not feet good about the hanging though it could not be compared to that of Z.A. Bhutto in any context.

She also expressed her indignation over killings in the country saying that it raised questions about Pakistan’s ideology as Muslim youths were being killed in an Islamic state. “What would be the destiny of our country where religious activists are killed and pro-democracy leaders assassinated?” She observed that the state and its rulers were following different ideologies. “The rulers’ ideology has roots in oppression, exploitation and takeover of the capital.”

Ms Ghinwa told her party workers and supporters a day would come when the country would become a democratic state.

Water crisis

Suggesting that a shortage of (irrigation) water was a crisis and a big issue of the time, the PPP-SB chairperson urged Sindh and Punjab to stop accusing each other of stealing or wasting water in order to prevent it becoming a ‘crisis of mutual trust’. She said provinces should evolve a just water management mechanism to resolve the issue.

She, however, noted that big landowners were stealing others’ share in irrigation water. On the question of dams, she expressed the view that building giant dams using obsolete technology might not be beneficial to the country.

She also suggested promoting solar energy as an alternative source to ensure provision of electricity to the citizens at cheaper rates.

Resolutions

The meeting adopted 10 resolutions one of them asking the government to reopen the Z.A. Bhutto judicial murder case and urging the judiciary to start an early hearing of the relevant reference.

Through the other resolutions, the PPP-SB called for adopting “independent” foreign and economic policies i.e. free from the influence or shadow of the International Monetary Fund and World Bank; payment of outstanding arrears to sugar cane growers and fixing of fair rates of cane and wheat prices; capping of corruption, terrorism and street crimes; and containing the prices of commonly used commodities.

Ghulam Haidar Narejo, Feroza Lashari, Chaudhry Muneer, Ali Ahmed Palepoto, Javed Iqbal Moazzam and others also spoke.

Published in Dawn, April 5th, 2016