The Pakistan Peoples Party is clear that sheer dint of personality carries the most currency. The party knows that Bhutto charisma is its strongest card—a card that has arguably trumped all opposition over the years. Nonetheless, the party has had to contend with high levels of criticism over not doing its job in Sindh, which explains why it appears to be making an effort to change. Perhaps the first major signal was the replacement of Qaim Ali Shah as chief minister with Murad Ali Shah. There is a reason why you are seeing more of Bilawal Bhutto these days.
“There is no denying that the PPP has a collective vote in Sindh,” says Khalid Jabli, an activist in Thatta, providing a grassroots perspective on how the party’s vote bank is perceived in districts such as his. He puts this down to unconditional love for the Bhuttos, not matter what the “intellectual class thinks”. “You and I can have reservations over the performance of the Sindh government but can we deny the charismatic leadership of the Bhuttos in politics?” he adds. “Let me remind you, people cannot forget the worst decade of [CM] Arbab Rahim during ex-dictator Musharraf’s time.” There is a reason why people say, ‘vote sirf Bhutto jo’ in Sindhi, meaning, the vote is only for Bhutto.
That charisma seems to be at work these days. To quickly recap recent developments: Bilawal led a ‘Salam Shuhada Rally’ on October 16 to pay tribute to people who were killed in the bomb blasts in 2007 at his mother’s Karachi homecoming rally. Nisar Khuhro has been made party president in Sindh (for a second time). Bilawal has been vocal about current issues on the national political front, which has successfully kept him relevant on news rundowns. He has demanded the resignation of Chaudhry Nisar Khan and warned of launching an opposition front against the ruling PML-N.
Bilawal has four demands: “re-constitution of a parliamentary committee on national security; passage of the Panama Bill drafted by the PPP; implementation of the resolution on CPEC; and appointment of a foreign minister”. He even suggested the PPP join hands with the PTI against Nawaz Sharif if these demands were not met. He questioned the government’s decision to prevent PTI workers from protesting. These moves have been seen as popular and mature.
On a visit to injured cadets from the Quetta police training centre, he gave an emotional speech about the nation paying a price for terrorism and he criticised the government for ‘harbouring’ terrorists. To provide some much-needed relief from heavy-handed politics, the young Bhutto visited the Shiv mandir in Karachi over Diwali and later on in Ubauro, diverted the media and the nation’s attention from serious politics by commenting on plans to marry. To sum up, it has been a busy month for Bilawal. If Nisar Khuhro’s prediction is to be taken seriously, it would appear that all this activity is geared towards the 2018 elections and beyond with the plan to make Bilawal either leader of the opposition or the youngest prime minister this country has had, if he clears the age requirement.
Bilawal would perhaps have not emerged to lead the pack unless his father, Asif Ali Zardari, were behind him. “We all understand that such decisions have been made based on an understanding between Asif Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto,” says Aajiz Jamali, a journalist in Karachi. “We should accept that each leadership brings its own team and decisions as we have witnessed from Benazir Bhutto, Begum Nusrat Bhutto and now Asif Zardari. They all chose their own people who can respect their decisions.” But Bilawal would have to have been acceptable to the core committee as well. Jamali adds that the PPP tends to respect the decisions of its core committee, which he feels he cannot say for other parties such as the PTI and PML-N. He gives the example of Fahmida Mirza and Hasnain Mirza, both very much in the party because of decisions made by the core committee despite hard criticism. Another example is the removal of Qaim Ali Shah as CM once the party felt he could or should no longer serve. So it worked for six months to select Murad Ali Shah.
“Decisions are always made by senior leadership in political parties and this new team has the authority of the PPP’s senior leadership,” says Jai Prakash Moorani, a journalist in Hyderabad. For him, Khuhro was a natural choice as he was always a core leader within the party and communicates with party workers. “It is interesting. The selection committee which recommended new party leaders named Nisar Khuhro and Moula Bux Chandio,” he says. Both men were on the selection committee and by law this means that you can’t nominate yourself. “But here, both nominated their names for the party president seat and then the PPP selected Nisar Khuhro.”
For now, Khuhro is deferring to Bilawal, as his statements indicate. Perhaps the party understands that new blood is needed. Bringing Bilawal into the public eye helps create a soft image for the party, which certainly helps ahead of the elections. Moves like these tend to boost political energy. But much is hinged on Bilawal being a weapon in the Punjab where his presence might help the PPP keep its few seats. Otherwise the party is effectively limited to Sindh.
The PPP plays an important role in Sindh’s politics as it can counter certain forces. “In Sindh, without the PPP, religious and conservative parties will fill the political space,” says Javed Qazi, an activist in Karachi. “At least the PPP is a progressive political strength.” But even he admits that the party has not delivered as it should have. “This new team is like old wine in a new bottle,” he says, but adds that perhaps Bilawal can bring about change as a secular leader. If anything, perhaps he will be able to revive the spirit of the jiyalas which died after Benazir Bhutto left and Asif Zardari took over.
Zulfiqar Kunbhar adds:
The timing to revive jiyala spirit is certainly right. Sindh has been through a bad patch and Bilawal cannot ignore the provincial government’s abysmal performance. “Sindh has been sad for many years,” says Abdullah Hussain Haroon, a former Sindh Assembly speaker. “The PPP could not deliver in any sector where they made promises, especially in social welfare, education and health.” Little development has been seen in the rural areas where there is no drinking water and no jobs. The PPP’s perceived ability to deliver while in government was so bad that from 2008 to 2013 it was wiped out from the Punjab.
“Zardari sahib and the National Assembly completed their five years in office but didn’t ask the people how they were doing,” says Shahzad Awan, a diehard worker from Lyari. “BB never gave importance to elected representatives. She gave importance to the workers. If they complained she did something. Zardari sahib did the opposite.”
Any political strategist would tell Bilawal that even if his party were popular, he still would be risking it by only relying on the sympathy card that may have worked in the past. That strategy was a natural outcome perhaps for Bilawal’s mother after she stood for the election in 1988 after the death of her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Then in 2008, Zardari won on the back of a wave of sympathy after Benazir’s death in 2007.
This also means that expectations are high for Bilawal. Lyari’s Shahzad Awan very clearly says that the young people are hoping to see something and are expecting Bilawal to produce job opportunities for them. Some party workers backed this assessment, saying that they think Bilawal has attracted young people for two major reasons: the promise of jobs and his interaction with the common man.
Age might just work in favour for Bilawal. “His rivals Nawaz Sarif and Imran Khan are over 65 years old,” remarks talk show host and political analyst Suhail Warraich. Pakistan has a huge youth population which can be tapped as a votebank. “I foresee Bilawal playing a role in the post-election scenario even if he is not going to win the elections.”
Age could also work against Bilawal, given that he is 28. Perhaps this is why the need was felt to have two former premiers, Yousuf Raza Gilani and Raja Pervez Ashraf, accompany him to the Oct 16 rally. These two figures may not be considered heavyweights today but their presence at least could have conveyed the impression that Bilawal had the backing of the older party leadership. Sherry Rehman’s constant presence in all the pictures is also significant.
“Slowly and gradually Bilawal has taken control of the party,” says Warraich. “He has made political space for himself in recent moves. He has also asserted his powers by changing the chief minister. Even uncles in his party who are more than double his age are calling him chairman.”
In order to be seen as the party’s chairman, Bilawal first had to shrug off the impression that he was under the total control of his father and aunt Faryal Talpur. There was also input from Owais Muzaffar aka Tapi that would have had to be contended with. Few people have forgotten that Zardari once publicly said that Bilawal was politically immature. So what has happened within one and a half years that he has suddenly matured politically? And is the party lining up behind him because they realise he is the only way it can win or that they truly believe he can deliver?
“Well, one can expect these things from a father’s mouth for his young son,” Warraich says. “Even Asif Zardari admires his abilities. I met Zardari sahib recently in London. Zardari says though Bilawal doesn’t have a command over Urdu he has a command over political, social and human rights issues and you see he is active now.”
For whatever it is worth, the ‘change’ may have won over staunch critics such as Sheikh Rashid Ahmed. “For a few days now, the love has grown between us and might grow more in the days to come,” Sheikh Rashid told The Friday Times, referring to a recent meeting with Bilawal. We are ready to work together and form an alliance with the PPP but it should come from the heart, he said in reaction to Bilawal’s threat to agitate with a long march.
If Bilawal plays his cards right, he can reorganise the party and assert himself. He could narrow the gap between senior party leadership and the workers—something that has been missing since his mother’s death. He would also have to whip the Sindh government into shape. The reports of corruption and inefficiency are staggering.
Speculation of Bilawal’s ability to impress and have an impact aside, what is definitely clear is that the PPP has switched on election mode. Part of the tactic is to move away from being a “friendly” opposition to a tough one. “The PPP is focusing more on Sindh and Southern Punjab,” Warraich adds. “In the presence of Imran Khan, it is hard for the PPP to made inroads into the political space in central Punjab.” This may explain why there has been talk of a Seraiki province, adds Sindhi columnist with Kawish newspaper, Arbab Nek Muhammad. This could lead to the political benefit of more seats in Punjab.
According to Hussain Haroon, in rural Sindh we are seeing some political personalities start joining the PPP, which may be an indication of which way the wind is blowing. Even those who opposed the PPP in the last general elections have tilted towards the party now, he remarks. Perhaps this is a case of simply not being clear that any other choice is available. He did cryptically mention, though, that as election days approach, we could see a change in people’s minds. “They could go for a second option.” Bilawal’s work is cut out for him.
Veengas and Zulfiqar Kunbhar are Karachi-based journalists
“There is no denying that the PPP has a collective vote in Sindh,” says Khalid Jabli, an activist in Thatta, providing a grassroots perspective on how the party’s vote bank is perceived in districts such as his. He puts this down to unconditional love for the Bhuttos, not matter what the “intellectual class thinks”. “You and I can have reservations over the performance of the Sindh government but can we deny the charismatic leadership of the Bhuttos in politics?” he adds. “Let me remind you, people cannot forget the worst decade of [CM] Arbab Rahim during ex-dictator Musharraf’s time.” There is a reason why people say, ‘vote sirf Bhutto jo’ in Sindhi, meaning, the vote is only for Bhutto.
To sum up, it has been a busy month for Bilawal. If Nisar Khuhro's prediction is to be taken seriously, it would appear that all this activity is geared towards the 2018 elections and beyond with the plan to make Bilawal either leader of the opposition or the youngest prime minister this country has had, if he clears the age requirement
That charisma seems to be at work these days. To quickly recap recent developments: Bilawal led a ‘Salam Shuhada Rally’ on October 16 to pay tribute to people who were killed in the bomb blasts in 2007 at his mother’s Karachi homecoming rally. Nisar Khuhro has been made party president in Sindh (for a second time). Bilawal has been vocal about current issues on the national political front, which has successfully kept him relevant on news rundowns. He has demanded the resignation of Chaudhry Nisar Khan and warned of launching an opposition front against the ruling PML-N.
Bilawal has four demands: “re-constitution of a parliamentary committee on national security; passage of the Panama Bill drafted by the PPP; implementation of the resolution on CPEC; and appointment of a foreign minister”. He even suggested the PPP join hands with the PTI against Nawaz Sharif if these demands were not met. He questioned the government’s decision to prevent PTI workers from protesting. These moves have been seen as popular and mature.
On a visit to injured cadets from the Quetta police training centre, he gave an emotional speech about the nation paying a price for terrorism and he criticised the government for ‘harbouring’ terrorists. To provide some much-needed relief from heavy-handed politics, the young Bhutto visited the Shiv mandir in Karachi over Diwali and later on in Ubauro, diverted the media and the nation’s attention from serious politics by commenting on plans to marry. To sum up, it has been a busy month for Bilawal. If Nisar Khuhro’s prediction is to be taken seriously, it would appear that all this activity is geared towards the 2018 elections and beyond with the plan to make Bilawal either leader of the opposition or the youngest prime minister this country has had, if he clears the age requirement.
Age might just work in favour for Bilawal. "His rivals Nawaz Sarif and Imran Khan are over 65 years old," remarks talk show host and political analyst Suhail Warraich. Pakistan has a huge youth population which can be tapped as a votebank. "I foresee Bilawal playing a role in the post-election scenario even if he is not going to win the elections"
Bilawal would perhaps have not emerged to lead the pack unless his father, Asif Ali Zardari, were behind him. “We all understand that such decisions have been made based on an understanding between Asif Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto,” says Aajiz Jamali, a journalist in Karachi. “We should accept that each leadership brings its own team and decisions as we have witnessed from Benazir Bhutto, Begum Nusrat Bhutto and now Asif Zardari. They all chose their own people who can respect their decisions.” But Bilawal would have to have been acceptable to the core committee as well. Jamali adds that the PPP tends to respect the decisions of its core committee, which he feels he cannot say for other parties such as the PTI and PML-N. He gives the example of Fahmida Mirza and Hasnain Mirza, both very much in the party because of decisions made by the core committee despite hard criticism. Another example is the removal of Qaim Ali Shah as CM once the party felt he could or should no longer serve. So it worked for six months to select Murad Ali Shah.
“Decisions are always made by senior leadership in political parties and this new team has the authority of the PPP’s senior leadership,” says Jai Prakash Moorani, a journalist in Hyderabad. For him, Khuhro was a natural choice as he was always a core leader within the party and communicates with party workers. “It is interesting. The selection committee which recommended new party leaders named Nisar Khuhro and Moula Bux Chandio,” he says. Both men were on the selection committee and by law this means that you can’t nominate yourself. “But here, both nominated their names for the party president seat and then the PPP selected Nisar Khuhro.”
For now, Khuhro is deferring to Bilawal, as his statements indicate. Perhaps the party understands that new blood is needed. Bringing Bilawal into the public eye helps create a soft image for the party, which certainly helps ahead of the elections. Moves like these tend to boost political energy. But much is hinged on Bilawal being a weapon in the Punjab where his presence might help the PPP keep its few seats. Otherwise the party is effectively limited to Sindh.
The PPP plays an important role in Sindh’s politics as it can counter certain forces. “In Sindh, without the PPP, religious and conservative parties will fill the political space,” says Javed Qazi, an activist in Karachi. “At least the PPP is a progressive political strength.” But even he admits that the party has not delivered as it should have. “This new team is like old wine in a new bottle,” he says, but adds that perhaps Bilawal can bring about change as a secular leader. If anything, perhaps he will be able to revive the spirit of the jiyalas which died after Benazir Bhutto left and Asif Zardari took over.
Zulfiqar Kunbhar adds:
The timing to revive jiyala spirit is certainly right. Sindh has been through a bad patch and Bilawal cannot ignore the provincial government’s abysmal performance. “Sindh has been sad for many years,” says Abdullah Hussain Haroon, a former Sindh Assembly speaker. “The PPP could not deliver in any sector where they made promises, especially in social welfare, education and health.” Little development has been seen in the rural areas where there is no drinking water and no jobs. The PPP’s perceived ability to deliver while in government was so bad that from 2008 to 2013 it was wiped out from the Punjab.
“Zardari sahib and the National Assembly completed their five years in office but didn’t ask the people how they were doing,” says Shahzad Awan, a diehard worker from Lyari. “BB never gave importance to elected representatives. She gave importance to the workers. If they complained she did something. Zardari sahib did the opposite.”
Any political strategist would tell Bilawal that even if his party were popular, he still would be risking it by only relying on the sympathy card that may have worked in the past. That strategy was a natural outcome perhaps for Bilawal’s mother after she stood for the election in 1988 after the death of her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Then in 2008, Zardari won on the back of a wave of sympathy after Benazir’s death in 2007.
This also means that expectations are high for Bilawal. Lyari’s Shahzad Awan very clearly says that the young people are hoping to see something and are expecting Bilawal to produce job opportunities for them. Some party workers backed this assessment, saying that they think Bilawal has attracted young people for two major reasons: the promise of jobs and his interaction with the common man.
Age might just work in favour for Bilawal. “His rivals Nawaz Sarif and Imran Khan are over 65 years old,” remarks talk show host and political analyst Suhail Warraich. Pakistan has a huge youth population which can be tapped as a votebank. “I foresee Bilawal playing a role in the post-election scenario even if he is not going to win the elections.”
Age could also work against Bilawal, given that he is 28. Perhaps this is why the need was felt to have two former premiers, Yousuf Raza Gilani and Raja Pervez Ashraf, accompany him to the Oct 16 rally. These two figures may not be considered heavyweights today but their presence at least could have conveyed the impression that Bilawal had the backing of the older party leadership. Sherry Rehman’s constant presence in all the pictures is also significant.
“Slowly and gradually Bilawal has taken control of the party,” says Warraich. “He has made political space for himself in recent moves. He has also asserted his powers by changing the chief minister. Even uncles in his party who are more than double his age are calling him chairman.”
In order to be seen as the party’s chairman, Bilawal first had to shrug off the impression that he was under the total control of his father and aunt Faryal Talpur. There was also input from Owais Muzaffar aka Tapi that would have had to be contended with. Few people have forgotten that Zardari once publicly said that Bilawal was politically immature. So what has happened within one and a half years that he has suddenly matured politically? And is the party lining up behind him because they realise he is the only way it can win or that they truly believe he can deliver?
“Well, one can expect these things from a father’s mouth for his young son,” Warraich says. “Even Asif Zardari admires his abilities. I met Zardari sahib recently in London. Zardari says though Bilawal doesn’t have a command over Urdu he has a command over political, social and human rights issues and you see he is active now.”
For whatever it is worth, the ‘change’ may have won over staunch critics such as Sheikh Rashid Ahmed. “For a few days now, the love has grown between us and might grow more in the days to come,” Sheikh Rashid told The Friday Times, referring to a recent meeting with Bilawal. We are ready to work together and form an alliance with the PPP but it should come from the heart, he said in reaction to Bilawal’s threat to agitate with a long march.
If Bilawal plays his cards right, he can reorganise the party and assert himself. He could narrow the gap between senior party leadership and the workers—something that has been missing since his mother’s death. He would also have to whip the Sindh government into shape. The reports of corruption and inefficiency are staggering.
Speculation of Bilawal’s ability to impress and have an impact aside, what is definitely clear is that the PPP has switched on election mode. Part of the tactic is to move away from being a “friendly” opposition to a tough one. “The PPP is focusing more on Sindh and Southern Punjab,” Warraich adds. “In the presence of Imran Khan, it is hard for the PPP to made inroads into the political space in central Punjab.” This may explain why there has been talk of a Seraiki province, adds Sindhi columnist with Kawish newspaper, Arbab Nek Muhammad. This could lead to the political benefit of more seats in Punjab.
According to Hussain Haroon, in rural Sindh we are seeing some political personalities start joining the PPP, which may be an indication of which way the wind is blowing. Even those who opposed the PPP in the last general elections have tilted towards the party now, he remarks. Perhaps this is a case of simply not being clear that any other choice is available. He did cryptically mention, though, that as election days approach, we could see a change in people’s minds. “They could go for a second option.” Bilawal’s work is cut out for him.
Veengas and Zulfiqar Kunbhar are Karachi-based journalists