DER MURAD JAMALI: Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Syed Khurshid Shah has said that the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is the only party which represents people of the four provinces and pledged that it will not compromise on the rights of poor people.

He was speaking at a ceremony in Sibi on Monday in which Sibi District Council chairman Malik Qaimuddin announced joining the PPP with his supporters.

Mr Shah said that the PPP had rendered unprecedented sacrifices to promote democracy, protect democratic institutions and achieve the rights of poor people.

“Even the party’s leaders Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto did not hesitate from sacrificing their lives for democracy and solidarity of the country,” he said.

He criticised the Pakistan Muslim League-N government for failing to solve problems being faced by people.

Due to flawed policies of the government, he added, the country had come under the burden of heavy loans and unemployment was increasing day by day.

Mr Shah said that it was the PPP which had given the Constitution to the country and made efforts to provide people “Roti, Kapra aur Makan”.

He recalled that Ms Bhutto had introduced the Benazir Income Support Programme to provide financial support to millions of poor people.

After coming to power in 2018, he said, the PPP would provide financial assistance to up to 10 million poor and deserving people.

The opposition leader said that it was the PPP which had introduced the National Finance Commis­sion award whereas the incumbent government was delaying the latest edition of the award because it had failed to evolve consensus among the four provinces.

He said that the party would continue to raise voice for the rights of poor people of the four provinces.

He welcomed Mr Qaimuddin and his supporters in the PPP and said that with their entry, the party would become stronger in the area.

Former federal minister Mir Changez Khan Jamali, PPP leaders Sadiq Ali Umrani and Ali Madad Jattak and Mr Qaimuddin also spoke on the occasion.

Published in Dawn January 17th, 2017