NOWSHERA: PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Monday urged the chief justice of Pakistan (CJP) and the chief election commissioner (CEC) to play their role in ensuring fair elections so that no one could question their legitimacy.

“State institutions should play their role within the constitutional framework to ensure free, fair and impartial elections to steer the country out of the existing economic crisis,” the PPP chairman said while addressing party workers in Nowshera.

“We will accept only the decision of people’s vote and will not accept anyone else’s decision at all, because the existing problems can be solved only by a government elected by the people,” he said.

He said the CEC and the CJP would have to do their part effectively to ensure fair elections so that no one could point a finger at their legitimacy.

Without naming anyone, Mr Bhutto-Zardari said those who had run away from local bodies elections lately started claiming that they would get a two-thirds majority in elections and change the 18th Amendment.

He made it clear that only PPP would be the winner if fair elections were held, claiming that his was the only political party that knew how to change the fate of farmers, labourers and jobless people.

Mr Bhutto-Zardari said growing poverty, unemployment and inflation had made lives extremely miserable; yet the government failed to play an effective role in addressing the core issues. He also warned that in case a victor was chosen even before the elections on Feb 8, opposition parties would not sit silent.

Published in Dawn, November 21st, 2023