The way forward

Shaheed Benazir Bhutto returned to Pakistan on October 18 2007 Hundreds of thousands of people gathered in Karachi to welcome their beloved leader who was returning to her homeland after eight years of exile Two explosions hit the rally killing nearly 200 people and injuring hundreds more Shaheed BB was assassinated on December 27 the same year only two months after her returnBilawal Bhutto Zardari C chairman of Pakistan Peoples Party PPP waves to supporters during his arrival for a public gathering in Karachi on October 18 2014 Tens of thousands of PPP supporters gathered in Karachi to hear Bilawal Bhutto Zardari the son of the countryrsquos slain premier Benazir Bhutto on the formal launch of his political career PicGetty ImagesOn the seventh anniversary of the Karsaz tragedy Ms Bhuttorsquos son Bilawal BhuttoZardari held a huge rally in Karachi It was a mammoth show of strength by the PPP mdash the largest since 2007 By choosing the day of BBrsquos arrival the jalsa rally was not just aimed at launching Bilawal but to revive the memory of the charismatic Bhuttos The 26yearold Bilawal definitely invokes memories of both Zulfikar Ali Bhutto and Shaheed Benazir in the hearts of the jiyalas PPP loyalists His looks mannerisms speech delivery are reminiscent of both his late grandfather and his motherThe Pakistan Peoplersquos Party PPP came to power in 2008 Despite completing five years in power and a smooth transition after the 2013 elections there was no smoothsailing for the PPP government From the courts to the media from the military establishment to the opposition parties the PPP faced a number of challenges during those five years Due to its bad governance record and alleged corruption the PPP was routed in Punjab in the 2013 elections Its critics call it a regional party now as the PPP was only able to form a government in Sindh but its supporters feel the party still has a lot to offer and would be able to revive itself before the next general electionsBilawal BhuttoZardarirsquos primary objective should be the revival of the PPPrsquos popular constituency amongst the rural and urban poor besides creating a centreLeft pole of liberal and secular politics as opposed to the current Right vs Right contest in Pakistanrsquos political arena In his recent speech Mr BhuttoZardari touched upon issues that are closer to the hearts of the liberal and progressive intelligentsia By talking about terrorism religious extremism sectarianism Aasia Bibi and other such issues that no other political leader would dare raise Bilawal reminded one of ZAB and BBrsquos courage However the young Bhutto should not forget that he has a huge challenge facing him Reviving past memory is not enough though necessary The PPP is going through a metamorphosis and generational change It is time for Bilawal to come up with a concrete social democratic programme which will address the issue of poverty face the challenge of extremism develop a new narrative of an enlightened political party in the current situation The PPP has to find new slogans that have an appeal for the new generation As opposed to the extreme social stratification of the late 60s when the PPP was formed by ZAB there is now a huge youth bulge in Pakistan whose aspirations and needs can only be addressed by improving our education system and its relationship with the market requirements of human resource The PPPrsquos focus should be on greater social services and ensuring that the Sindh government deliversThe writer is a Pakistani journalist Reach her at mehmalsgmailcom