Pakistan Peoples Party approves Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari's name for prime ministerial candidate

Islamabad [Pakistan], January 4 : The central executive committee (CEC) of the Pakistan Peoples Party-Parliamentarians (PPPP) has formally given approval to the name of PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari as the prime ministerial candidate, Pakistan-based Dawn reported.
Later, he announced PPP's election manifesto. A hybrid meeting of the CEC chaired by its president Asif Ali Zardari was held. During the meeting, the leaders held discussions on the party's election campaign, manifesto and prevailing political situation in Pakistan and contacts with other political parties.
Zardari expressed his confidence in the leadership of Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari and presented his name as the prime ministerial candidate on behalf of the PPPP. The CEC participants endorsed the proposal, according to Dawn report.
Speaking to reporters after his nomination, Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said he will run PPP's election campaign in all four provinces, notwithstanding the law and order situation. He said that after coming into power, he will abolish all those policies that allowed terrorism to resurface in Pakistan.
He vowed to remove the Pakistani Rupees (PKR) 1,500 billion subsidy being given to big industries and elites and divert the amount towards farmers. The other promises made in the manifesto included introducing an elimination of hunger scheme at the union council level, the introduction of labourer and youth cards for specific financial benefits, doubling salaries of employees, 300 power units free of cost for people of less privileged areas, enhance the scope of Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) and provision of free quality healthcare services.
Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari agreed that these steps would need harsh decisions like the abolishment of federal ministries and divisions that had been devolved to the provinces under the 18th Amendment to save funds for giving financial benefits to the common people, Dawn reported.
In response to a question, Zardari stated that whether one liked it or not, he is contesting polls from Lahore while both the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) were yet to take a decision on their candidates who will contest against him. He dared PTI founder Imran Khan and PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif to contest the polls against him from his Larkana constituency.
On Tuesday, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) accused Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) and Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) of 'conspiring together' to delay the upcoming elections set to be held on February 8 after sensing their defeat, Pakistan-based Dawn reported. The PPP said the two parties were seeking guarantees before the day of the elections.
While addressing a press conference in Bilawal House, PPP Sindh president Senator Nisar Khuhro said that elections must be held on February 8 "come what may" and cautioned that any move to cause a delay in the polls will be taken as a contempt of the apex court, which had intervened to ensure the date of polling after much uncertainty.
Nisar Khuhro warned that a delay in the polls will only weaken democracy in Pakistan and give space to terrorist groups due to the absence of a strong administration and elected representatives in Pakistan, according to Dawn report."It [suggestion to delay polls] has all been started by Maulana Sahib [JUI-F chief Fazlur Rehman]. He is referring to deteriorating law and order as an excuse to delay the polls. We ask Maulana Sahib what guarantees he's seeking under the garb of this excuse? Let it be very clear to everyone that it's not the timely polls, but delay in the polls that would deepen the fear of terrorism in the country," Dawn quoted Nisar Khuhro as saying.
The PPP leader accused PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif of remaining silent on the suggestion of delaying the elections by maintaining that he himself did not want polls to be conducted on February 8. He said Nawaz Sharif was looking for an escape from polls as he feared about his defeat even in his stronghold, Punjab.