Days of manipulating elections over; PPP to sweep polls; PM

Faisalabad: Prime Minister Raja Pervez Ashraf on Saturday said the days of manipulating the elections were over and the Pakistan People’s Party will sweep the forthcoming general election, as it has the overwhelming support of the masses.

Addressing a huge public gathering here at Pakistan’s textile hub, the Prime Minister said whenever there is free, fair and transparent election, the PPP succeeds with an overwhelming
majority.

Citing the historic verdict in the Asghar Khan case by the Supreme Court, the Prime Minister said it was an eye-opener and showed how the results were manipulated in the past.

He said the case has unveiled many things and the workers need to study it to be aware of those who try to manipulate the results.He said today there is no more fake voters and said the 100,000 bogus votes of all constituencies of Faisalabad were now a thing of past.

The Prime Minister said the Pakistan People’s Party has done solid work to back it in the forthcoming election.”We are helping 7 million households through the Benazir Income Support Program, across the country,” he said and announced that the program will be increased four times, if the party succeeds in the next polls.Hundreds of enthusiastic workers of the party, dancing to the tune of drums, arrived at the venue – Iqbal Stadium, that was decorated with huge tri-colour banners, portraits of the leaders and flags of the Pakistan People’s Party and Peoples Youth Organization.

The Prime Minister said despite the claims of the opponents the PPP will succeed in the end, as it took practical measures and
did unprecedented development work to serve the masses and did not rely on mere rhetoric.

The Prime Minister said the government has more than doubled the salaries of government employees and the workers and said the support price of wheat has also been raised from around Rs 600 to Rs 1200 per 40 kg in the past four years and said it will bring prosperity.

The gathering was also attended by Governor Punjab Latif Khosa, PPP Punjab President Manzoor Wattoo, Raja Riaz, Tanveer Ashraf Kaira, Minister of State for Science and Technology Raheela Baloch.

The Prime Minister said there was a time when everyone believed that it was impossible to get rid of the dictatorial regime of former President Pervez Musharraf. However, it was the political acumen of President Asif Ali Zardari that led to the ouster of the dictator.
He said it also goes to the credit of President Asif Ali Zardari that all the powers of the President of Pakistan were handed over to the parliament, as he followed the vision of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, and made it supreme.

The Prime Minister said he was here as a “worker Prime
Minister” addressing his fellow workers and proud to be part of a
party that was real representative of the people of Pakistan.
He said he was also proud to belong to the middle class and has risen
from the ranks of a common worker.He said the post of the prime minister of Pakistan was equally open for all workers of the party, without any discrimination.On the contrary, he said, many other parties spoke about democracy, but never exercised it practically and no other party can match the Pakistan People’s Party in this aspect.
He said the huge gathering was a reflection of the love of workers for their party and who had rendered numerous sacrifices for the PPP.
He paid tribute to President Asif Ali Zardari and Shaheed Benazir Bhutto for strengthening the party and democracy at every tier.

The Prime Minister Pervaiz Ashraf said the Pakistan People’s Party today completed five years of its term, as it believes in the supremacy and strength of the democracy.He said when the PPP came into power, there was a dire shortage of wheat flour and 2.6 million tonnes was being imported to meet the needs.”Today the country is self sufficient in wheat and we are exporting it,” he said.

He said the opponents of party can only think of competing once they let their common workers compete for the highest slot.The Prime Minister announced Rs 1.5 million as cash award for Muhammad Asif who won the world snooker championship and offered him a job of his choice and invited him (Asif) to visit him, as he was the pride of the country and has brought good name to the country.

The Prime Minister amidst a thunderous applause announced a
number of development schemes for Faisalabad.He approved the demands made by the local MNAs for various schemes and agreed to the establishment of grid stations by Hassan Murtaza and Sher Naseer,for a passport office by Raheela Baloch, besides a sewerage plant for the city.