KARACHI:
Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Saturday highlighted Karachi’s crucial role in Pakistan’s overall development, accusing the federal government of meting out “stepchild treatment” to Sindh and withholding its resources under various pretexts.
Speaking at the inauguration of Phase I of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Expressway, formerly Qayyumabad Expressway in Shah Faisal Malir, he said his family had been contributing to the development of Karachi for three generations.
He praised his grandfather and PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, saying the former prime minister had revolutionized Karachi’s infrastructure and laid the foundation for major projects including Pakistan Steel Mill (PSM) and Shahrah- e-Faisal.
Bilawal also praised his mother, former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, for paying special attention to the metropolis and working tirelessly to establish peace and provide employment opportunities to its residents.
He also said that Shaheed Benazir Bhutto fought against two military regimes.
The PPP Chairman highlighted that the Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto Expressway project will connect not only Karachi but the entire Sindh to the rest of the country and provide employment opportunities to the people of the metropolis.
“My favorite project ‘Shahrah-e-Bhutto’ is built under public-private partnership. Many projects have been successfully completed through public-private partnerships,” he said.
“We have always strived to provide facilities to the public either free of charge or at the lowest possible rates. Thanks to the Sindh government, the toll has been fixed at Rs100 and we hope that it will remain the same.”
Bilawal stressed that Pakistan’s development was closely linked to Karachi’s progress.
He said his father and PPP co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari had allocated the highest funds for the development of Karachi.
He accused the Center of treating Sindh unfairly and called the distribution of resources unfair.
“The federal government is treating Sindh like a stepchild. The federal government is making excuses and withholding resources from the province,” he said.
“When rights are not granted properly, it becomes extremely difficult to provide essential facilities.”
The PPP chairman said the public-private partnership was introduced to address the lack of resources, noting that it was working successfully.
“I urge [Sindh] Chief Minister Sindh Murad Ali Shah must engage and satisfy the business community of Karachi. The business sector will not function on goodwill alone. If they (the business community) and the people of the city benefit, only then will we be successful. »
He stressed the need to promote public-private partnerships to address the problems of the province, particularly those of Karachi.
He noted that Karachi was facing a long-standing water problem and urged his government to give it highest priority to resolve the problem.
Earlier, Bilawal personally took the Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Expressway, paid the toll of Rs 100 and conducted a thorough inspection of the project.
