Bilawal urges political parties to set aside differences, focus on economic crisis

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Friday urged the federal government and political parties to set aside their differences and work together to address the country’s economic crisis, warning that the economic fallout from the Iran war was placing an unprecedented burden on ordinary people.

Speaking at a groundbreaking ceremony for a 600-bed hospital in Larkana, he said the economic impact of the war was being felt from the United States to Larkana, adding that the burden was “breaking the back” of ordinary people. “We have not seen such a crisis in our recent history,” he said.

He said it was the responsibility of every government to address the economic crisis and prioritise the welfare of its citizens, adding that surviving in the prevailing economic climate had become increasingly difficult for Pakistanis.

Bilawal described the situation as a test for the government and stressed the need for collective efforts to ease the hardships faced by the public.

He urged the federal government to engage political and economic stakeholders instead of pursuing confrontation, saying political differences should take a back seat to efforts to improve people’s lives.

“If we remain engaged in fighting one another, with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf, with Maulana (JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman), with terrorists, with India and Afghanistan, then we will not be able to alleviate the suffering of the Pakistani people, which should be our utmost priority,” the PPP chairman said.

“As Pakistanis, we should forget our differences and focus on the real issues, particularly the economic problems faced by the people,” he added.

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Turning to the electoral reforms committee, Bilawal said it was the first time he had witnessed the opposition, government coalition partners and some government representatives collectively raising concerns about alleged election rigging.

He said that if election-related grievances were shared by all these political stakeholders, they should work together through the electoral reforms committee to address them.

Bilawal called on political parties to cooperate in strengthening democracy and ensuring transparent elections in the future.

He added that if the PTI did not want to participate in the process, it should not complain to the public about election rigging.