Web Desk, June 21, 2023: The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) is observing the 70th birth anniversary of former prime minister Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto on Wednesday.
Ceremonies have been held in various parts of the country where cakes were cut to mark the day. A ceremony was held at the Sindhi Adabi Board in Jamshoro district. PPP’s senior leader and board chairman Makhdoom Saeeduz Zaman and Board of Governors member Sarfaraz Raja cut the birthday cake.
Born in Karachi on June 21, 1953, into a wealthy landlord Sindhi family, who was politically influential also, Benazir was assassinated on Dec 27, 2007, in Rawalpindi. Her father Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was elected prime minister in 1973, her grandfather Sir Shahnawaz was deewan (prime minister) of erstwhile state of Junagarh and great grandfather Ghulam Murtaza Bhutto was a big landlord of Larkana.
Benazir studied at Harvard University and the University of Oxford where she was president of the Oxford Union.
She served as the 11th and 13th prime minister from 1988 to 1990 and from 1993 to 1996. She was the first woman elected to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country.
BILAWAL BHUTTO-ZARDARI
In his message, her son Bilawal pledged to follow her philosophy for the supremacy of the constitution and parliament.
According to a statement, the PPP chairman paid tribute to the first elected woman prime minister of the Islamic world on her 70th birth anniversary and said that Dukhtar-e-Mashriq (Daughter of the East) was a ray of light for the nation trapped in darkness.
“I assure the nation that if the people give the mandate to our party in the upcoming general elections, the PPP government will also create ample employment opportunities in the country, just like it was done during the governments of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto,” he said.
Bilawal said Shaheed Benazir Bhutto was truly a history-making personality and a movement, adding that if the plant of democracy is growing in the country today, it is the fruit of the long and tireless struggle and sacrifices of Benazir Bhutto.
He pointed out that Shaheed Mohtarma played a key role in strengthening democratic institutions in the country and the promotion of equality in society. He said the best way to pay homage to her was to follow her vision and philosophy and associate oneself with the struggle to complete her mission.
“The time has come for every one of us to put forward the ‘Benazir Agenda’ for the progress and development, prosperity, stability and progress of the country,” he added.
ASIF ALI ZARDARI
Former president Asif Ali Zardari said the PPP should be steadfast on the philosophy of Shaheed Mohtarma Benazir Bhutto must fulfill her dreams.
He said that the aim of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto’s politics was to end the darkness of ignorance from the country. She struggled throughout her life to liberate the people from social and economic exploitation, he added.
Former president Zardari said the “PPP is struggling to make this country envisioned by Benazir Bhutto where social and economic justice is available to the people and a society free from all kinds of extremism and terror.”
He said the PPP would definitely liberate the people from poverty, bankruptcy and economic misery.
RAJA PERVEZ ASHRAF
National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervez Ashraf acknowledged the sacrifices made by Shaheed Benazir Bhutto and stated that “her relentless efforts for the protection of the rights of farmers, labourers and the downtrodden sections of society will always be remembered.”
He eulogised her mission to establish a democratic system and a society based on equality which he believed echoed the vision of her father, the late Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.
The speaker praised her commitment to promoting the strength of institutions, constitutional supremacy and harmony between the federation and the provinces. He applauded her advocacy for tolerance and dialogue in politics, rather than imposing ideas, and her relentless struggle against terrorism, aiming to make Pakistan a cradle of peace.