Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari says government is taking concrete measures to control inflation and steer the country out of economic crisis.
Addressing a function in Karachi today, He said that the government attaches top priority to agriculture sector for the socio-economic development of the farmers. He said that all possible measures will be taken for the rehabilitation of the flood affected people in the province.
Bilawal raised concerns about the country’s first-ever digital census, terming it a “flawed” exercise while calling on the federal government to address the PPP’s concerns in this regard.
FM Bilawal said that judging from the feedback received so far, the PPP and many citizens from other provinces had reservations about the exercise.
“I got to know that a digital census is under way when it was extended. If this is a census where you have to enter your information yourself on the internet and if I as a federal minister did not know, then it means the people must not know [about it] either.”
The PPP chairman said the party wanted a “just and right” census and not a “flawed” digital census being conducted in a similarly “flawed” manner. He further said Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah had apprised the federal government about the PPP’s concerns in this regard.
“If on someone’s instructions, elections in one or two provinces will take place based on a different census, and other provincial polls will be carried out based on a flawed digital census, then this is not acceptable to the PPP.
“If the federal government does not look at the concerns of the chief minister and the Sindh government and doesn’t address them, then Sindh will not support the federal government in this exercise. If they want to go on their own, count their own way and want to impose everything of their own then let them come and do it themselves,” the foreign minister said.
He said that the Sindh government had a mandate and would not allow the people’s rights to be “snatched”.
Bilawal said the census was also important for ensuring fair distribution of resources between the provinces, adding that any “wrong measures” in this regard would not be tolerated.
During the address, the foreign minister also called on the federal government to fulfill the promises made to the victims of last year’s catastrophic floods.
“The federal government should prioritise flood affectees. If the Centre or the prime minister made any announcements or promises, then they will have to be fulfilled,” he said, adding that the PPP would raise the issue with the prime minister as well as in the National Assembly and the federal cabinet.
“The promises to flood affectees will need to be fulfilled otherwise it will be very difficult for us to hold our ministries […]. It is unacceptable that promises made to flood victims are not fulfilled,” the foreign minister said.
Bilawal said that he hoped his “complaint” would be addressed by the federal government.
