Bilawal calls for ‘political reset’ to address country’s challenges

KARACHI: Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Tuesday called for a “political reset” to address the country’s challenges, urging the government and opposition to set aside their differences and work together to resolve public concerns, particularly economic difficulties.

Speaking at a ceremony in Karachi marking the completion of one million houses for flood-affected families in Sindh, Bilawal said political cooperation was needed instead of further confrontation.

He said Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif should first restore the confidence of his coalition partners before reaching out to opposition parties, adding that the government and opposition needed to work together to resolve public issues.

“The public does not want hatred and division; they want solutions to their economic problems,” Bilawal said, calling on political leaders to unite around national challenges.

His remarks come amid heightened political tensions between the federal government and opposition parties, particularly over the imposition of emergency and governor’s rule in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

President Asif Ali Zardari approved emergency measures and governor’s rule in the province on October 11 under Articles 232 and 234 of the Constitution, following recommendations from the federal cabinet. The federal government cited the deteriorating security situation and the provincial administration’s alleged failure to effectively tackle terrorism.

The measures were subsequently endorsed by a joint sitting of Parliament on October 15, with 214 lawmakers voting in favour and 56 opposing them.

Opposition leaders criticised the decision, questioning its constitutional basis, while the ruling party in the KP, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), challenged the move in the Peshawar High Court (PHC), seeking restoration of the elected provincial government.

Earlier this month, Bilawal offered a possible way out of the political deadlock, saying that he would ask the federal government to withdraw governor’s rule in KP if Islamabad and PTI reached an agreement on counterterrorism.

He urged the government to stop confronting the Imran Khan-founded party and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) supremo Maulana Fazlur Rehman, arguing that political differences should not prevent cooperation on security and economic challenges.

Sindh plans more houses

Turning to the housing initiative, Bilawal said the Sindh government had completed one million homes for families affected by the 2022 floods and planned to build a further two million.

The 2022 monsoon floods affected around 33 million people and killed more than 1,700, according to figures reported at the time. The disaster damaged or destroyed millions of homes, with Sindh bearing the largest share of the destruction.

The provincial government later launched the Sindh People’s Housing for Flood Affectees (SPHF) programme to rebuild homes for affected families. The World Bank approved $500 million in financing for the initiative in December 2022.

Bilawal described it as the world’s largest housing initiative and the biggest land transfer programme in Pakistan’s history, saying it had provided vulnerable families with homes and ownership rights to the land on which they were built.

He said the project had surpassed a previous record held by Nepal’s government for home construction and generated around one million employment opportunities.

He said the scheme was significant because women were made owners of the houses and land, giving them greater financial security and independence.

Bilawal defended the initiative against allegations of corruption, saying the houses had been built despite criticism from political opponents. He thanked Prime Minister Shehbaz for supporting the project, while criticising the previous federal government for not providing financial assistance to Sindh when the floods struck.

Programme targets 2.1 million homes

Meanwhile, Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah said the provincial government had completed one million houses under the SPHF programme, which has a target of 2.1 million climate-resilient homes across 23 districts.

He said the World Bank had contributed $500 million to the programme, while the Sindh government had provided a further $179 million from its own resources.

Murad said every completed house had undergone digital monitoring and verification, adding that the programme had enabled millions of rural women to become homeowners for the first time.

He said work was also underway on clean water, sanitation and drainage facilities, while an investment of $1 billion was planned to provide essential services to 4,800 villages.

The chief minister said affected families had been given responsibility for constructing their own homes instead of relying on contractors, adding that the people of Sindh were the real contributors to the initiative.