Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)
was founded on 30th November 1967 in Lahore, where
democratic-socialists and left-wing intellectuals gathered to meet with Bhutto
at the residence of Dr. Mubashir Hassan, and the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP)
was formed.
In Lahore, the newly formed
party's members elected Quaid-i-Awam Z.A Bhutto as its first chairman and its
manifesto, titled "Democracy is our Politics; Socialism is our Economy;
Power Lies with the People", was written by Bengali communist J. A. Rahim,
and first issued on 9 December 1967.
The manifesto identified the
party's ultimate goal, main objective and raison d'etre as being the
achievement of an egalitarian and "classless society", which was
believed to be attainable only through socialism. It called for "true
equality of citizen's fraternity under the rule of democracy", within
"an order of social and economic justice." In 1968, a massive
public-relations program was launched by the party, beginning in Punjab.
Bhutto's program directly targeted the country's poverty-stricken masses. The
left-wing oriented slogan, "Land to the Landless", proved
irresistible to the peasants and labour-force, as the party promised not only
to abolish the fundamental feudalism that had plagued the country, but also to
redistribute lands amongst the landless and the peasants. The working class and
labour movement quickly flocked to the party, believing it to be a party
dedicated to the destruction of capitalism in the country.
Eventually, the
socialist-oriented catchie-phrase Roti, Kapra aur Makan ("food, clothes,
and housing"), became a nationwide rallying-call for the party. By the
1970s, the PPP had become the largest and most influential leading socialist
and democratic entity in the country.
So, it was Punjab generally
and LAHORE in particular where PPP laid its foundations but the recent bi-elections
in NA 122 held where PML N candidate Sardar Ayaz Sadiq bagged 76,204 votes and
Abdul AleemKhan of PTI was the runner up who secured 72,043 ballots.
The painful and pondering
thing is that PPPP candidate Barrister Mian Amir Hassan bagged ONLY 819 votes
in Lahore where the party was founded which might have caused the trouble for
the souls of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto and Benazir Bhutto who will be suffering from
restlessness even in the heaven.
The question is WHY IT
HAPPENED in 2013 general elections and WHY IT IS HAPPENING now with PPP?
Apparently, there are various
reasons to answer this poisonous question but main reason for this worst defeat
of PPP is because Bhutto along with his comrades formed the party with a slogan
“Power Lies with the People” but in today’s PPPP “Power Lies with the Feudals”.
Bhutto further raised another slogan with his strong and bold voice "Land
to the Landless", to abolish the fundamental feudalism and to redistribute
land among the landless people, but today’s PPPP is one of the prominent land
grabbing group in Sindh. Moreover, Bhutto uproared another catchy slogan “Roti,
Kapra aur Makan” (bread, clothing and shelter) but today’s PPPP is busy in
looting the public from their own public tax money.
A party which was meant to be
the party of people has now become “Pakistan Paisay-walas Party – PPP” and the
ideological element in the party is replaced with the narrative of “Seat Nikalo
Policy”. Bhutto formed the party for the
establishment of an "egalitarian democracy" and the "application
of socialistic ideas to realize economic and social justice". Today,
except few old ideological comrades and jiyalas, nobody knows even the definition
of “Socialism” and how can you expect from the mighty feudals like Sardar Ali
Gohar Khan Mahar, Sardar Ali Nawaz Khan Mahar and Sardar Ali Mohammad Khan
Mahar of Ghotki who remained allies of Pervaiz Musharaf in his tenure, to
define socialism.
PPP is dying not only in
Punjab but it is taking last breaths in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan as
well. PPP’s ongoing feudocracy in Sindh has kept itself alive apparently but it
has distanced itself from the masses for whom Bhutto said “Power Lies with the
People” and there is still a chance for the existing party’s (sensible)
leadership to cure this disease before it gets political death in the country.
