Shahzad Memon
The progress of PPP led Sindh government is unprecedented. It has been more or less 15 years since the government of Sindh has been held by a single party through from 2008 to 2013 it was a allianc govrrnment where MQM, PMLQ were also part of then provincial government. In recently held elections in Urban Sindh a large number of citizens have changed the history and politics of the city of the urban Sindh by electing the candidates of the Pakistan People’s Party in the recently held municipal elections. But there are people who seem to be asking a question that the People’s Party has been in power in Sindh for 15 years, what has this party done in Sindh? If the Sindh government of People’s Party has not done anything in Sindh, why are their seats increasing in every election since 2018?
One of the reason is that Sindh has made remarkable progress in eradicating poverty. The Sindh-wide People’s Poverty Reduction Program has made Sindh the only province that has reduced poverty more than Punjab and KPK. KPK is the only province where poverty has actually increased and people coming out of hunger and poverty have been giving vote to PPP because they know their lives and infrastructure in Sindh has massively changed and progressed since PPP took over the leadership of province.
For instance Thatta and Badin are the poorest districts of Sindh, where the Sindh government has embarked on an economic revolution. The PPP Sindh government in collaboration with non-governmental organizations and public-private partnerships has been providing interest-free loans to women here, helping many families to come out of poverty. This is in addition to BISP, a national program of PPP. Along with this the health and education delivery has been remarkable in these districts along with other districts of Sindh.
Since the devastating floods this year, PPP has started the struggle to achieve climate justice for Pakistan at the global level and for this purpose, high-profile summits and conferences are being actively participated in around the world. The Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has emphasized on several occasions that climate justice is only possible through financial compensation, not aid or charity.
Today because of pro active approach of Chairman PPP, Pakistan is a world leader in climate change and diplomacy and the leadership of PPP is playing a key and prominent role in sensitising the world about threats being faced by Pakistan.
Thus, on the global horizon, PPP fights for Pakistan and third world countries, and back home its the only party which has emerged as champion of rights of oppressed and downtrodden class. In the political history of Pakistan, its the only PPP which has enacted as many legislations and initiatives for the oppressed classes, women and minorities. The inclusion of transgenders among the beneficiaries of the Benazir Kafalat program is another significant achievement and will provide much-needed support to one of the most oppressed identities in Pakistan.
Not only this, Pakistan People’s Party is the only political party that gives party tickets on general seat to a Non-Muslim candidate and manages to get this non-Muslim candidate elected from a Muslim-majority area. You may easily have an idea that if a non Muslim members are winning on PPP seats in Muslim majority areas then there must have been some solid development and progress which is forcing the majority to vote for PPP candidates.
Although there is still a big question mark on the popularity of the PPP in Punjab, the largest province of the country where PPP has been always a victim of chatacter assasination, in the changed political and electoral scenario, there are bright possibilities of the party’s influence here too. As by changing the social and economic structure of Thar through the Thar caol project and by laying a network of modern hospitals (heart, liver and cyber knife) across Sindh, including providing clean water in the vast desert area of Thar, the Pakistan People’s Party in Sindh is stronger than ever. And it has become more popular with every passing days. The roads and infratastructure developed in Sindh in recent years in second to none. For people living in Punjab if have chance to travel from Muzaffargarh to Mianwali they would realize soon that the development claim of a development Punjab is nothing less than a propaganda but in Sindh even the Thar and Thatta has better roads networks. The kind of public private partnership programs taking place in Sindh are not only remarkable but getting endorsements from foreign partners.
Sindh has seen the most development among the four provinces, but unfortunately the media is either Karachi centric or Lahore centric thus failed to portray the right image of PPP’s development work, due to which its development projects are not visible to the citizens living outside Sindh. Let me give some examples, you can’t find a precedent of this kind of development in another province.
For example, regional blood centers were established in the largest cities of Sindh, where thousands of blood can be collected simultaneously. Multi-purpose sports complexes were built in all major cities of Sindh during the PPP government. Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University was established in Nawab Shah, Shaheed Benazir Bhutto University was established in Larkana, Benazir Bhutto Cardiac Care was established in Tandojam Muhammad. Establishment of state of art hospitals in almost all districts of Sindh, establishment of free hospital for treatment of cardiovascular diseases in Larkana, Badin, Karachi, Tando Mohammad Khan, Hyderabad etc. Network of universities in almost all major districts and specially back ward areas like Thar. Airport in Thar
Then widening of Shariah Faisal karachi which was a federal govt’s domain but PPP invested from provincial resources, along with this in Karachi more than dozens of flyovers and overhead bridges have been constructed during last few years of PPP rule.
Construction of Pakistan’s largest bridge on Sindh River which is 2 km long at Jhirkk Mula katiyar which is connecting Thatta and Tando Mohammad Khan.
Completion of 1 MW Gas Fired Power Plant at Nooriabaad. A twelve-storey cancer treatment center is at Jinnah Hospital in Karachi, where people from across Pakistan are enjoying free of cost medical treatment. In an area like Lyari PPP government started a medical college, another university, Thar has NED University campus there. Last but not least the PPP’s government is treating every citizen of Pakistan with same stick. You dont need Sindh domicile to get free treatment in its medical facilities. And this is the reason why PPP in Sindh is no more a rural party as urban Sindh has given its verdict in favor of Sindh in recently held elections. Seems those who kept dividing Sindh between urban and rural and their propaganda has been defeated by development and progress.
It may seem ridiculously strange in the present times, but looking at the political and social realities of Pakistan, it seems that there is an ideology that can take Pakistan out of the current social decay and political division. This ideology is the ideology of Pakistan People’s Party which embraces the people of every class from Karachi to Malakand in the national color of Pakistan. PPP’s GDP growth and economic management of Sindh is a clear indication that its the only PPP and President Asif Ali Zardari under whose leadership Pakistan may get out of this ongoing turmoil.
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