No urgency for general elections: Bilawal

ISLAMABAD:

On Sunday, Foreign Minister and Chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari said he did not see the need to hold early elections as was being demanded by Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan. He claimed that the coalition government has inherited from its predecessor a “divided country” and a “collapsed economy.”

However, according to Mr. Bhutto-Zardari in an interview with Al-Jazeera, the current administration was searching for answers to domestic issues as well as an international agreement.

The PPP chairman stated that the country must unify in order to confront the issues left over from the previous administration since no one political party or individual could handle the matter on their own.

He dismissed claims that Mr. Khan’s dismissal was the result of a “foreign plot,” saying political leaders should tell the truth to their constituents rather than concoct elaborate hypotheses. He said it was the first time a prime minister had been ousted legally, without a coup or judicial decision, by a vote of confidence.

When questioned if early elections would be held, the PPP chairman responded that rather than “furthering democracy,” early polls “would further Khan’s goal.”He asserted that the country must fulfill its five-year term unless there is an urgent need, which is not the case at the moment.