Bilawal to contest next elections on mother’s seat: Faryal Talpur

Benazir had returned to parliament via Larkana constituency to become country’s first female premier

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will contest the 2018 general elections on his mother Benazir Bhutto’s NA-207 (Larkana-IV) seat, the younger Zardari’s paternal aunt Faryal Talpur, commonly known as Adi, disclosed to journalists on Tuesday.

After returning to parliament by securing the National Assembly constituency, Benazir had gone on to become the country’s and the Islamic world’s first female prime minister.

Talpur made the revelation while responding to queries during a dinner hosted especially for female journalists by Sadia Javed, former information secretary for the Women Wing of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

She added that although the decision was yet to be finalised, she was certain that PPP Chairman Bilawal would run from the same Larkana constituency from where his mother contested. Talpur herself currently holds the NA-207 seat.

Ever since her brother Asif Ali Zardari had announced that his son would participate in the next general elections, people have been speculating that Bilawal might contest from NA-204 (Larkana-I), the same seat on which PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and later his wife Nusrat Bhutto ran and won.

When asked about her nieces Bakhtawar and Aseefa Bhutto Zardari, Talpur smilingly replied that they both would certainly participate in the elections, but the details were yet to be finalised.

The PPP MNA predicted that Bilawal would become the youngest premier of the country in the 2018 general elections.

The younger Zardari would be in his 30th year at the time of the polls.

Talpur also discussed the role of female media personnel and expressed her pleasure that a large number of women had been becoming part of the print and electronic media.

Referring to the Civil Hospital Karachi incident concerning Bilawal, she said that the media should not run one-sided reports and that the news they print and air should state facts in a more balanced manner instead of picking on people.