PPP Decides to Take Strong Stand on Canals Issue, Exploring All Options
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has made a firm decision not to compromise on the issue of canals, as it continues to consider it a vital struggle for its survival. Media reports suggest that the party is prepared to take drastic actions, including protests, and will not shy away from any extreme steps in response to the ongoing controversy over the canal issue.
The PPP is deliberating on various options, including holding protests against the canals, ending its alliance with the federal government, and exploring other possible measures. PPP Co-Chairman and President of Pakistan, Asif Ali Zardari, has reportedly delegated full decision-making power to party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on this matter. Bilawal is expected to make an announcement about either ending the alliance with the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) or conditionally continuing the partnership.
Additionally, the party is also considering making the resolution of the Link Canal issue a precondition for continuing its alliance with the government, along with the possibility of staging a strong protest either in the parliament or on the streets.
The PPP’s stance appears to indicate that it is willing to make sacrifices, including relinquishing control over the Sindh government, to protect the interests of the people of Sindh. The party’s position is that its leadership values the people of Sindh over the power of the provincial government.
**Response to Choudhry Manzoor’s Comments by Azma Bukhari**
In response to PPP leader Choudhry Manzoor’s recent press conference in which he criticized the canal project, Punjab Information Minister Azma Bukhari expressed her discontent. She criticized PPP for politicizing the issue of canals, saying that while this has become a longstanding tradition in Sindh, such politics does not take place in Punjab.
Azma Bukhari advised PPP to resolve its internal disagreements privately, rather than airing them in the media, and to refrain from making unnecessary statements. Reacting to Choudhry Manzoor’s press conference, she remarked that Sindh’s leaders consider water to be their right, while some PPP leaders are now referring to it as Punjab’s water.
She raised the point that PPP needs to first settle among themselves who actually owns the water, as such conflicting statements only create confusion. The political discourse surrounding the canal issue continues to intensify, with each side asserting their stance over the resource distribution.
