Summary Bilawal Bhutto supports peace efforts, criticizes inequality, and highlights PPP’s welfare policies during Skardu election rally.
SKARDU (Dunya News) - Chairman Pakistan Peoples Party Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that peace efforts must succeed, expressing hope that the field marshal’s initiatives to end conflicts would prove successful, adding that peace would help protect ordinary citizens from economic losses.
Addressing an election rally in Skardu, he said people across the world were bearing the burden of conflicts, particularly the Iran situation, and reiterated that the Pakistan Peoples Party has always been a peace-oriented political force opposed to war.
Bilawal Bhutto said the current political and regional situation had created a sombre environment for election campaigning. He referred to violence in Iran and claimed that schoolchildren had been targeted in attacks, adding that under such conditions he was unable to fully campaign across Gilgit-Baltistan.
He said he had previously visited every tehsil of Gilgit-Baltistan during past elections and claimed no other politician had conducted similar outreach. He added that PPP’s connection with the region was not only political but generational.
The PPP chairman said his party represents the marginalized and believes development is only meaningful when farmers, labourers, and youth benefit through jobs and economic opportunity.
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He highlighted the Benazir Income Support Programme as a key welfare initiative reaching poor households and said attempts to undermine it would fail.
He also said Pakistan, as a nuclear power, cannot be easily threatened, crediting the country’s nuclear and missile programs to the leadership of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto.
Bilawal said PPP had strengthened Pakistan’s defence capability and referred to past foreign policy decisions, including the closure of foreign bases after the Salala incident under former president Asif Ali Zardari.
He also argued that Gilgit-Baltistan’s resources belong to its people and pledged greater autonomy and ownership rights under constitutional arrangements.
Referring to development projects, he said Sindh had built record numbers of housing units for flood victims and claimed PPP’s governance focused on welfare and job creation rather than concentrating wealth among elites.
He added that Gilgit-Baltistan could generate electricity and supply it to Islamabad, emphasizing resource utilization for local benefit and economic empowerment.
