Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-Chairman and former President Asif Ali Zardari has promised his party workers that the next Prime Minister of the country will be from his party. Previously, the party has made numerous claims of victory in the next general elections and claimed that the party will take Punjab from the ruling Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PMLN).
‘This is my promise to you that the next Prime Minister will be from Pakistan People’s Party,’ Asif Ali Zardari said while addressing a gathering of party supporters in Garhi Khuda Buksh to mark the 38th death anniversary of the party’s founder Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto. How the former President, considered as a maestro of politics will achieve this feat remains an unanswered question for now. Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz apart from other things will highlight the infrastructure development in the province to court voters. Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) will put forward the reforms in police, health and education sector but what the Pakistan People’s Party has got to show for? Corruption allegations against its leaders? The trash filled roads and streets of Karachi, or will the party still ask for votes in the name of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and not based on its performance in the province of Sindh? The party faced a humiliating defeat in Punjab during the 2013 elections and has fared poorly in the bye elections that have taken place in the last two years.
The party is now talking of snatching Lahore from Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz, however during the bye elections on Lahore’s NA-122 the Pakistan People’s Party faced an embarrassing defeat. The results came out with Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz’ Sardar Ayaz Sadiq winning the seat by claiming 74525 votes, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s Abdul Aleem Khan was a close second with 72082. Pakistan People’s Party candidate Barrister Mian Amir Hussain could only get 819 votes which accounts to roughly 0.6% of the total votes polled.
If the party now plans to win elections it will not only have to tremendously improve its performance in Sindh but will also need to forge electoral alliances with other parties. So far there has been talk of a potential alliance with Pakistan Muslim League-Q but nothing has materialized yet, even the Pakistan Muslim League-Q itself is not in very good position as far as the next general elections are concerned. People’s Party has also suffered due to what many believe is the lack of opposition from the party against the ruling party. Even in the Panama Papers scandal that was highlighted relentlessly by Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf the Pakistan People’s Party remain rather subdued with its role reduced to party leaders commenting on the issue on talk shows. The party’s only other in this regard was the draft Panama Papers Inquiries Bill tabled in the Senate.
Having said that, the party despite its what can be described as a visible lack of performance in Sindh remains relatively unchallenged in the province. In fact the party may gain with newly formed constituencies after the census and from the disintegration of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). The other two major parties, the PMLN and PTI have failed to make any inroads in the province.
The party’s promise of having their own Prime Minister for the next term seems farfetched.
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