ISLAMABAD  -  Pakistan People’s Party said yesterday that Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Bhut­to Zardari were the PPP’s candidates for the slots of the President and the Prime Minister. Speaking at a news conference here, PPP leader Faisal Kareem Kundi said the top party lead­ers will be the party’s candidates for the top slots. “Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is our Prime Ministerial candidate, and Asif Ali Zardari is our presiden­tial candidate,” he said. Zameen Khan Malaika Raza, Malik Azmat Khan, and Nazir Dhoki, accompanied Kundi at the event. Kundi said Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was addressing workers’ con­ventions across the country.

He said Bilawal was taking steps in the interest of the people. “Other par­ties should also join the people. Why do some parties want to postpone the elections instead of going to the peo­ple,” he said. Kundi criticized the poli­tics of the Pakistan Muslim League- N, saying that “if a party is so big, why delay the election for two months? We met with the Election Commission and expressed our reservations, and we discussed the issue of level playing field.” He said the PPP wants free and fair elections on February 8. “There is no excuse for postponing the elections. Compare Nawaz Sharif’s Lahore rally with the Chairman of the People’s Par­ty’s rally, compare Maryam Nawaz’s rally in Gujrat with the People’s Party’s Workers’ Convention in Gujranwala, and you will know that the people are with the PPP. We are fully prepared for the elections on February 8,” he said.

Kundi alleged that the National Accountability Bureau (NAB) had al­ways been used for political engineer­ing. “NAB was wrong in the past or is wrong today. NAB is not anyone’s es­tate but an institution,” he said. Kundi said the PPP has rejected the use of social media in elections, and if a ban was imposed on social media, it will be against freedom of expression. “The people have the full right to ex­ercise their right to vote and express their emotions,” he added. He said Zardari has made Bilawal wear a tur­ban in Balochistan, putting an end to all rumors about differences. Kundi said that elections were held even in wars. “Every election may not be fair, but elections have taken place. We should not go beyond the elections on February 8,” he added. Kundi said the PPP had held 9 conventions in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, and the PPP’s committed worker was with the par­ty. “If seasonal birds want to go some­where, they will go. Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has held meetings with all of­fice bearers and leaders. 

The PML-N has always turned insti­tutions into politics. The PML-N has lost its ground in Punjab. PML-N has realized from the Gujrat rally that they have become unpopular in Punjab,” he contended. Kundi said the PPP con­demns terrorism in Dera Ismail Khan. “The PPP has previously condemned this incident, continues to talk about the implementation of the National Ac­tion Plan, and says that if the National Action Plan had been implemented, such incidents would not have oc­curred,” he maintained. He ques­tioned: “Who brought these terrorists back into the country, and who spoke on their behalf? Terrorism incidents started on a daily basis.” Kundi said the case of the hanging of PPP founder Zulfikar Ali Bhutto was heard the other day, and “we believe that justice should be done to the Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. Those involved in the martyrdom of Zulfikar Ali should be punished.”