KARACHI: Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Saturday complained that the federal government has always treated Sindh like a stepmother.
He was addressing the inauguration ceremony of the first section of the Malir Expressway here. The PPP Chairman said that the federal government was not providing the due share to Sindh and therefore the provincial government had to opt for public private partnership for this important project. He claimed that “Sindh’s resources are being withheld on various pretexts”.
Bilawal Bhutto said that the development of Karachi is necessary for the development of the country. Regarding the current problems facing Karachi, PPP Chairman said that their solution can be found only through public-private partnership. If the business community doesn’t make a profit, why should they work with you? We need to solve all the problems of Karachi together with the private sector.
He said that three generations of the Bhutto family have been contributing to the development of the city and his grandfather had taken revolutionary steps to improve Karachi’s infrastructure and employment.
He further said that his mother and former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto also paid special attention to the development and peace of Karachi whenever the People’s Party government came.
Bilawal said that former mayor of Karachi Mustafa Kamal can testify that his father Asif Ali Zardari has provided more resources to the port city than any person in the country. He urged the government to make development projects beneficial to the business community and said that investors will not be interested in projects that are not profitable for them. Admitting that water scarcity is a major problem in Karachi, the PPP chief urged the provincial government to focus on solving water-related problems in the city. Bilawal also said that his party will not do politics of extremism and revenge. “Green energy parks should also be built under public-private partnership,” suggested Bilawal and invited all segments and stakeholders to make joint efforts to develop the country’s financial hub.
The high-speed road, named Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Expressway, is the largest public-private partnership (PPP) project in Sindh. It has a three-lane dual carriageway with modern access-controlled infrastructure. The approximately 40-km expressway connects Korangi Creek Avenue (DHA) with the M-9 Motorway (Superhighway) near Kathore, offering an important link for commuters and significantly reducing travel time. does Bilawal himself drove his vehicle along with Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah on the state-of-the-art corridor, featuring a three-lane double carriageway with modern and access-controlled infrastructure, and paid a toll tax of Rs 100. Inauguration ceremony was organized at Qayyumabad Interchange of Expressway.