Two questions are haunting the masses and political analysts in Pakistan: Are the days of the Bhutto dynasty over? What is the future of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) under the leadership of Asif Ali Zardari?
The rumor making the rounds in political circles is that Bilawal has been sent out either for good or till the time he matures enough to take up the huge responsibility of the party like his grandfather, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, who had founded the PPP in 1967.
It is difficult to ascertain the veracity of the reports about Bilawal’s departure from the political scene. However, there are confirmed reports about the closure of the secretariat established for Bilawal by Asif Ali Zardari at their Karachi residence. The secretariat employees have also been sent packing.
This clearly signals a change in Zardari’s strategy to draw maximum mileage from the legacy of a family, which has left deep imprints on the country’s political history. Since the assassination of Benazir Bhutto, Zardari has been making every possible attempt to maintain his grip on the party. Keeping in view the debatable system of political dynasties, Zardari added the surname “Bhutto” to all his children’s names to attract the masses, who are still under the spell of the dynamic personality of the PPP founder Z.A.Bhutto.
Zardari’s attempt to portray Bilawal as the true successor to Benazir and Zulfikar Ali Bhutto has miserably failed. Bilawal is not even half the politician that his illustrious mother and grandfather used to be. Many argue that he has the potential but needs some time to better understand the political dynamics of the country. Whatever the reason might be, there is no denying the fact that despite trying hard to copy the mannerism of Z.A.Bhutto, Bilawal has failed to attract the masses.
Coming back to the unconfirmed reports about Bilawal’s departure— permanent or temporary —from the political scene, it remains a mystery as to what led to such drastic measures after spending millions of rupees “from the public exchequer” on the “launching ceremony” of Bilawal recently in Karachi.
Insiders claim that Zardari was disenchanted with the way his Oxford-educated son behaved in his new role as a young politician. Zardari’s hopes to rely on Bilawal to rebuild the party’s image, which he himself had destroyed as the president of Pakistan and the party’s co-chairman, appear to have been dashed sooner than anticipated.
Instead of gaining ground, the party was completely knocked out in Punjab in last year’s elections. Now being branded rightly as a regional party of Sindh, the young man of 26, created controversies through his public utterances, which not only embarrassed Zardari but also caused deep dissensions within the rank and file of the PPP.
Seeing the collapse of the castle, sharp and sly Zardari has been busy building during the past few years; he was apparently left with no choice but to take over the control of the party once again.
Whether or not this move will work in the long run remains to be seen. Interestingly, the immediate results are not very encouraging as evident from Zardari’s recent public appearances in Lahore and Gujranwala. The public response to his rallies and speeches remained somewhat lukewarm. Bhutto watchers insist that Bilawal, trained by her mother, was cast entirely in the mold of Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, and pursued policies of his mother, assassinated in a bomb attack barely two months after her return from exile in 2007. That obviously meant differences with the father’s thinking and policy. Bilawal wanted the old guards to return to the party, whereas Zardari had often been accused of sidelining all those who were once considered close to Benazir.
Bilawal’s mother and grandfather, both were fiery speakers and aggressive in their approach. So is Bilawal, but Zardari has a different approach to politics. The gulf between father and son, therefore, is the natural corollary of circumstances.
The future of the PPP as a party truly representing the federation is now at stake. It remains to be seen if Bilawal would return to lead the party and follow the principles pursued by his mother. (The writer is a former Sindh Minister and senior journalist)
