Pakistan - Repairing PPP

Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Co-chairperson Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has announced to hold a public gathering in Karachi on October 18, as the party has now decided to kick off its political campaign under Bilawal’s leadership. After the party’s core committee concluded in Karachi on Monday, Bilawal Bhutto said that PPP would again be made party of masses by mobilisation of its cadres across the country. Only a day before, he apologised to his party’s disillusioned supporters. In an open letter addressed to his party (or ex-party) workers he admitted that PPP has made some mistakes in the past and those who have distanced themselves from the party for whatever reasons should reconsider their decision. Not only did he try to woo back his estranged supporters by emphasising his party’s leftist stance but urged them to join only pro-democratic parties and not the rightists, who he says have soft corner for terrorism and dictatorship. The comeback PPP is making to resuscitate its current deteriorated political standing and to reclaim the massive workforce it once enjoyed all over the country, which has now shrunken to Sindh only, seems to be challenging step.

It is not simple to win back people’s trust and overcome the disillusionment, which has penetrated constantly and gradually into the ranks of party politics and its workers. The impediment Bilawal Bhutto now faces is not only that a third party-PTI- has stolen its support base but people too, are tired of choosing between the PML-N-PPP binary. The mere rhetoric of change is not sufficient to persuade the masses now. The colossal support that PPP once enjoyed was due to its appeal to the common man, but that has dissipated gradually since the party abandoned its leftist orientations from 1986 onwards. It once challenged the status quo but over time has itself turned into a status quo. Moreover, due to party’s provincial leaders’ indifferent attitudes, Punjab especially witnessed an incremental downfall. The workers refused to accept these leaders. To fill this gap, Bilawal himself should take up the command and appease his alienated workers by addressing their grievances. To make Punjab a stronghold, new leaders should be chosen from within the party ranks rather than imposing some detached aloof leaders who have never been with the jiyaalas. Furthermore, instead of relying on the sugar coated and distorted versions of leftism, he needs to be audacious in iterating his party’s original stance and realising that the common man is the only support of PPP will help the party to get back on track.