‘Centre must provide Bilawal security’

KARACHI: Sindh Information Adviser Maula Bakhsh Chandio has said the federal government should provide security at the earliest to Chairman of Pakistan People's Party Bilawal Zardari as his life is in danger and he has been facing threats. The federal government would be held responsible if anything happened to him (Bilawal).

Speaking to newsmen at the Karachi Press Club on Thursday, the Sindh information adviser said the PPP had been affected by terrorism as its leader Benazir Bhutto had become a victim of terrorism. Her loss was irreparable as she was the first woman prime minister of the Muslim world.

“The federal government is not providing security to Bilawal Bhutto even on our request. Bilawal Bhutto is the hope for Pakistan as he is supposed to lead Pakistan in the coming days. “The federal government wants that Bilawal Bhutto should not come out and should not meet with anyone as he has been emerging as a challenge for Nawaz Sharif and Shahbaz Sharif,” said the information adviser.

“Bilawal is the maternal grandson of Bhutto and the son of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, so he will continue to venture out and meet with people,” said Chandio. He said that in the past, the judgment of the apex judiciary regarding Zulfikar Ali Bhutto had not been accepted by the masses. In the present day even the judiciary was not willing to recognise the judgment given in the case of Bhutto.

Regarding the recent decision of the Sindh High Court against the appointment of chief minister’s law adviser, he said that advisers (to the chief minister/prime minister) along with allocation of portfolios had been working in Punjab, the Federation, and other provinces too, but Sindh was being meted out discriminatory treatment on this issue. “It is the prerogative of the chief minister to appoint someone as an adviser and allocate him (the adviser) a department,” he said.

He said the PPP had always honoured the judiciary as two former prime ministers of the country belonging to People's Party Yousuf Raza Gilani and Raja Pervaiz Ashraf had appeared in court when they had been summoned. “It is the hallmark of PPP that it always gives honour to the judiciary as we never run away from the courts,” he said.

He said that political quarters who had used terms like the good and bad Taliban acted as silent spectators to the worst act of terrorism perpetrated against the children of Army Public School, Peshawar. He said that in Pubjab even tickets for contesting elections had been awarded to prospective candidates having connections with proscribed organisations.

handio said that Sindh Chief Minister had left for Dubai to talk to the top leadership of the ruling party of the province on the issue of ministers and advisers associated with the provincial government.