Gilani says PPP still alive and kicking

Addresses rally in Lower Dir; Zardari skips
event for ‘no security clearance’

TIMERGARA: Former prime minister and senior vice-chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Yusuf Raza Gilani on Sunday said that those who claimed the demise of PPP lived in a fool’s paradise.

He said that PPP’s ideology and philosophy were still alive in the hearts of millions of people. Addressing a gathering to mark the fourth death anniversary of local PPP leader Zahir Shah Khan at Odigram here, he said the PPP restored the supremacy of the Parliament during its rule.

The venue for the public meeting echoed with ‘go Nawaz go’ and ‘Ro Imran Ro’ slogans. Zahir Shah Khan, who was a local PPP leader and the cousin of Awami National Party’s spokesperson Zahid Khan, was killed in a roadside blast in Maidan in Lower Dir district during election campaign four years back.

The former president of Pakistan and PPP’s co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari was expected to visit Lower Dir and address party workers, but he was not given security clearance, party sources told The News.

More than 12,000 party workers from Lower Dir, Upper Dir, Swat and Bajaur Agency attended the function, party sources said. A former deputy speaker of National Assembly Faisal Karim Kundi, Senator Ahmad Hassan Khan, PPP provincial head Humayun Khan, former provincial ministers Mehmood Zeb, Afsarul Mulk, Member Provincial Assembly Sahibzada Sanaullah, Muhammad Zamin and others also spoke on the occasion.

Senator Rubina Khalid, a former Member National Assembly Akhunzada Chattan, Najmuddin Khan, former governor Shaukatullah Khan and other PPP leaders were also present on the stage.

Yusuf Raza Gilani said the PPP had asked Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chief to discuss political issues in the parliament, but he declined to do so. He said no change was visible in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa despite the tall claims by the PTI leadership.

The former prime minister said the last PPP-led federal government gave billions of rupees to the provinces under the National Finance Commission Award.He said his party’s government gave provincial autonomy to Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, introduced Fata reforms and renamed the province.

The former prime minister urged the federal government to play an active role in securing the release of Pakistani prisoners from Saudi Arabia. Yusuf Raza Gilani said the government should immediately unblock the computerised national identity cards of genuine Pakistani citizens.

“We have planned to provide jobs to thousands of youth if we are voted to power again,” he said, adding the PPP always represented the poor and worked for their welfare. Meanwhile, some disgruntled PPP workers from Bajaur Agency chanted slogans against former governor Shaukatullah Khan as they demanded party leadership not to allow him to address the gathering.