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A brief history of PPP: mauj mela, madari, maqtal – by Hasan Mujtaba

A Critical View: Understanding the Politics of PPP‏ – By Ahmad Nadeem Gehla

Ayub Khan lost at the negotiation table at Tashkent the war that was won by the Pakistan army supported by the people of Pakistan in 1965. This humiliation enraged the people of Pakistan against the dictator. Mr. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto, a patriot as he has always been, was left with no choice but to quit the Ayub Government on June 16, 1966. Bhutto was determined to bring down the dictator who had betrayed the nation.

To achieve this goal, he needed a political organization and a political platform. He waited for more than a year before he found both; like so many aggrieved politicians before him, he chose to found his own political party.

The PPP was launched at its founding convention held in Lahore on November 30 – December 01, 1967. At the same meeting, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was elected as its Chairman. Among the express goals for which the party was formed were the establishment of an “egalitarian democracy” and the “application of socialistic ideas to realize economic and social justice”. A more immediate task was to struggle against the hated dictatorship of Ayub Khan,who was at the height of his power when the PPP was formed. Basic principles of PPP enshrined:

Islam is our Faith
Democracy is our politics
Socialism is our Economy
All Power to the People

The Party also promised the elimination of feudalism in accordance with the established principles of socialism to protect and advance the interests of peasantry.

Immediately after its formation, the PPP spread its message among the workers, peasants and students throughout Pakistan, who greeted it enthusiastically. While it was still in this process, a mass uprising broke out against Ayub Khan’s dictatorship and the PPP quickly moved to play a leading role in this movement. After Ayub resigned in March 1969, an interim military government took over and announced elections for December 1970. The PPP contested these elections on the slogans of “ROTI, KAPRA AUR MAKAN” (bread, clothing and shelter) and “all power to the people.”

The masses responded heavily to it in the polls, where PPP won 81 of 138 seats allocated to West Pakistan in the National Assembly (a total of 300 seats were contested for in both wings of the country ), coming in as the second largest party after East Pakistan – based Awami League. At the provincial level, it won majority in Sindh and Punjab legislatures.

Pakistan Peoples Party believes in equal rights for all in all sectors in education, energy, employment, electricity, this is possible in ppp government which is past and future manifesto party.

Contributions of Z.A. Bhutto & Benazir Bhutto for welfare of people and provinces

• The initiator of Pakistan atomic power energy (BY ZAB)
• The initiator of Tashkent agreement (BY ZAB)
• The initiator of Successful negotiation with India in 1971 and safe return of 91,000 soldier (BY ZAB)
• Initiator of strong Pakistan Army (against India) (BY ZAB)
• Initiator of the best air force in the world (BY ZAB)
• Initiator of Best foreign policy (BY ZAB)
• 1973 amendment (BY ZAB)
• Khairpur University, (BY ZAB)
• Chandka Medical College, (BY ZAB)
• Nawabshah Engineering College, (BY ZAB)
• Nawabshah Girls Medical College (BY ZAB)
• Initiator of missile technology (by BB)
• Electricity was supplied to 4 thousand Villages in twenty months in Pakistan including Sindh. (1988-90)
• Electricity supplied to more than 12 lac houses including Sindh 50000 loans for poor people to make small business1988-90)
• women’s banks1988-90)
• Admission and bed fees forced upon during Zia’s regime were abolished benefiting all poor Pakistanis. 1988-90)
•Fifty thousand new teachers were employed in Pakistan. 1988-90)
Education made compulsory up to 8th class. 1988-90)
•80 thousands new literacy centers were set up throughout the country. 1988-90)
•Ten thousands young people were given loans of 50 thousands each to start their own businesses. (1993-96)
•Very first time a separate ministry for women affairs was established to solve their problems. (1993-96)
• Women Bank was established. (1993-96)
• Women were given loan facility to start their own businesses. (1993-96)
• Computer centers for women were started in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad(1993-96)
•Port Qasim was extended in Sindh(1993-96)
• Built 21,000 primary schools in Pakistan (1993-96)
• Electricity to 18,000 villages.in Pakistan including Sindh (1993-96)
• Airport at Sehwan Sharif. (1993-96)
• Work on Ketti Bandar Port started. (1993-96)
• Five percent quota in for women in Employment was fixed in all Government departments. (1993-96)
• 6. Crisis Centre for Women in distress. – The Government set-up “Crisis Centres for women in Distress” in Islamabad and at Vehari. These were pilot projects which aimed at providing medical and legal aid to the women victims of violence. (1993-96)
• Establishment of Hostel for Working Women at Gujranwala, Lahore, Hyderabad, Sukkur, and Quetta. . (1993-96)
• Rearing and Development of Silk Worm Realing and Weaving of Silk Thread for Rural Women in Sindh. (1993-96)
• Centre of Excellence for Women Studies Islamabad, Karachi, Quetta and Peshawar. (1993-96)
• Current ppp have managed an NFC Award; and all provinces are receiving their rights equally.
• Managed to reach out to Baluchistan;
• managed to pass the some meaningful legislation, such as the Organ Donors Act.
• Politics of reconciliation and no political victimization (Current Government)
• A unanimously adopted NFC award and abolition of concurrent list ( current Govt)
• Ouster of General in a peaceful manner (Current Government)
•.Benazir income support program (current government)
• First time poverty survey for the welfare of downtrodden people in the history of Pakistan (Current Government)
• Reinstatement of politically victimized employees( Current Government)
• Free and independent Judiciary (Current Government)
• Chairman Accountability committee from opposition (Current Government)
• President surrendered his power first time in the constitutional history of Pakistan (Current Government)
• Operation in Swat and Waziristan against terrorists (Current Government)
• Powerful and independent parliament (Current Government)
• Empowering the workers through Employees Stock Schemes and Worker unions
• Encouraging youth through lifting ban on student unions

Needless to say that Pakistan is faced with extremely challenging events and is passing through one of its worst critical phases, due to insane extremism and the recent floods but still the democratic government of PPP has left no stone unturned in restoring order and calm in the country. Terrorists in FATA and adjacent areas were defeated in actions that required much courage while in most of the areas of FATA war against terrorism continues unabated. At the other end, PPP collective response remained apt and quick in rescuing and providing relief to the flood victims.

The floods have caused colossal devastation and loss leaving the economy in tatters by razing large portions of the infra-structure to the ground besides causing loss of tens of thousands of precious lives. But with the support of our civil society and international community, the Government of Pakistan has effectively managed to rescue delivering instant relief to the hapless people.

The Government has been successful in inviting the attention of domestic and international donors towards the bitter situation of flood-hit areas and its victims instead of paying any heed to negative propaganda. Strategies are being chalked out for the early recovery and rehabilitation of the affectees. The overwhelming response both in cash and kind, offered by the international community as international assistance to the Democratic Government of Pakistan to handle this record calamity is an appropriate response to those who raise misguiding questions about credibility and trust.

It is this show of confidence and trust in the Government of Pakistan by the people and the international community, which has forced enemies of democracy to dredge up a frivolous debate which is not conducive at such a crucial juncture of the country.

Since the very first day of the present democratic government, these schemers have been hatching conspiracies day in and day out against Pakistan’s nascent democracy achieved with much sacrifice and struggle after a long and nasty era of dictatorship.

It’s important as identifying those elements that are afraid of democracy and its dividends in the form of NFC Award, GB autonomy, fighting terrorism and extremism bravely, renaming Khyber-Pakhtoonkhwa, 18th Amendment, Aghaz-e-Haqooq Baluchistan, BISP and many more accomplishments.

Today PPP and its government are once again in the line of their fire. The enemies have nothing new in their hands except those very old worn-out weapons of false allegations and negative propaganda. But Pakistanis, weary of military dictatorships perpetuated through illegal usurpation of power, not only love democracy but have reposed their trust upon the democratically elected leadership and showing disdain for the enemies of their leadership.

PPP does not wish to push Pakistan back into the era of 90s again and this is the principal motivation that has inspired Co-Chairman PPP, President Asif Ali Zardari to vehemently pursue his visionary policy of reconciliation blocking out the politics of revenge inside Pakistan.

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