By Asim Shahzad
SHEIKHUPURA — Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Central Information Secretary Nadeem Afzal Chan has said that a government party has always competed with the PPP, but his party believes in the politics of patience and principle.
Addressing a large gathering at Shiraz Garden, Sheikhupura, on the occasion of All Pakistan Tankers Association Machike President Rana Khalid Saeed joining the PPP along with his family and colleagues, Chan said that the leadership had instructed party workers to “keep their hands to themselves until October 18,” reaffirming PPP’s commitment to democratic conduct.
He recalled that former dictator Zia-ul-Haq had crushed workers, students, and farmers with force, but the PPP continued to stand by the oppressed for the past 40 years. “The PPP is not a party of elites — it is the voice of the working class,” he said. Chan accused the government of occupying graveyards and Auqaf lands, urging party unity and promising that Bilawal Bhutto Zardari would soon visit Sheikhupura.
Highlighting the PPP’s people-centric policies, he said that whenever the PPP comes to power, it creates jobs, while “these tyrants come and sell national institutions.” He criticized ongoing propaganda against the PPP, saying that in other parties, meetings with leadership require money, but the PPP remains a true national party with the slogan of unity among all provinces.
PPP MNA Ali Qasim Gilani said the PPP was a coalition partner of the government but not bound to praise it. “We helped the Prime Minister reach the chair but owe no loyalty to his party,” he declared, reaffirming that the PPP stands with workers and the poor.
Gilani lauded the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) for empowering women and pledged to continue advocating for the people of Sheikhupura in both the National and Punjab Assemblies. He praised Rana Khalid Saeed’s decision to join the PPP, calling it a “boost to the party’s strength in Sheikhupura” and expressing hope that Rajput participation would further secure PPP’s future in Punjab.
PPP Central Punjab General Secretary Syed Hassan Murtaza said that the current government was in power only because of the PPP’s support. He urged the rulers not to divide the provinces over issues like agriculture, reaffirming the PPP’s commitment to defending farmers’ rights across Pakistan. “Politics should unite, not divide,” he said, welcoming Rana Khalid Saeed and his supporters into the PPP family.
He vowed that PPP workers would continue spreading Bilawal Bhutto’s message “from house to house, street to street, and city to city.”
In his concluding remarks, Rana Khalid Saeed thanked the PPP leadership for their visit and expressed full confidence in the party’s vision and leadership.
