UMERKOT: This flood is not a national but an international disaster, which has displaced a lot of people in Sindh, leaving them hungry and without shelter while inundating their crops and adding to their economic woes.

This was stated by Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari while addressing party workers and flood victims at a tent city here on Thursday.

He also met people in the tent city of Umerkot established at Chhachhro Road where some Hindu girls performed aarti and prayed for the long life of Bilawal.

He said today people of the district and he himself missed Syed Ali Mardan Shah who “always stood with his voters” in testing times.

He said there was an imported politician from Multan who grabbed thousands of votes from Umerkot and Tharparkar districts and always “extorted” money from the masses of this region in the name of spirituality, but why was he missing nowadays? Why he as a foreign minister did not attract the world to help the people of Sindh, he asked, alluding to Shah Mahmood Qureshi.

He said he (Qureshi) should have brought the prime minister to Umerkot and made him feel the pain of the flood-affected people.

He urged the people not to let them escape if they visited, unless they announced a special relief package like Watan Card as the PPP had started during 2011 floods.

The federal government had not only left them helpless, but also denied the due share of Sindh in the National Finance Commission award, he observed.

He appealed to national and international philanthropists to come forward and help the flood-affected people.

Accompanied by the Sindh chief minister, he met workers at Kharoro Syed.

He said it had been a tradition of the PPP that it never left people alone in hard times. The PPP and Sindh government had cancelled all of its activities to stand with the masses.

He said PM Imran Khan would have to own Sindh and its people. He would have to give rights to Sindh as he had provided to Punjab and other provinces. Otherwise, he (Bilawal), along with the people of Sindh, would march towards Islamabad. He said soon he would play a non-stop long inning with the help of the people.

Flood-affected youths, especially women, danced on party songs and showered rose petals on Bilawal’s vehicle.

Provincial Culture Minister Syed Sardar Ali Shah said those who were from the people were always among the people. That was the reason that Bilawal had camped in Mirpurkhas division for four days and freely mingled among people without thinking of his security.

Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah, Sardar Shah, Nawab Yousuf Talpur, Nawab Taimur Talpur, Dr Khatumal Jeewan, Qasim Siraj Soomro and other party leaders were also present.

Published in Dawn, September 11th, 2020