Daily Times

PPP Chairperson Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari will not visit Washington during his seven-day trip to the United States, according to a top party leader on Monday.

Bhutto arrived in New York today after he departed for the country on Sunday. His visit generated accusations from the PTI that the PPP leader was seeking a “backdoor deal” from Washington.

After landing in New York, the PPP chairperson refused to speak to the media, saying he is on a “personal visit” to the US.

“When I come here next, in September, I will then speak to the press,” he said.

“Bilawal Bhutto will not go to Washington during his visit,” clarified PPP-USA President Khalid Awan.

In a hard-hitting press conference earlier this month, PM Imran Khan’s Special Assistant on Political Communication, Dr Shahbaz Gill, had accused Bhutto of seeking a deal with the US through his upcoming visit.

Gill had claimed Bilawal is “going to take his CV (curriculum vitae) to Washington in a bid to get a job”.

“After reaching America, Bilawal will urge [the US government] to help him come into power, saying he is ready to do whatever they ask of him,” he had said.

Gill had said that the PTI-led government “will never allow Bilawal to succeed” in his plans. “We will not let such a deal be struck,” the premier’s aide had said.

He had said that during former president (retired) Gen Pervez Musharraf’s tenure, 13 drone attacks were carried out in Pakistan, while during PPP’s regime, the country witnessed a whopping 340 attacks.

The premier’s aide further alleged that former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice helped Musharraf and former prime minister Benazir Bhutto strike a deal to allow drone attacks on Pakistan.

“These people (PPP) shift the blame on Musharraf for Pakistan having provided military bases to America,” he had said.

The PPP responded back to Gill’s statements, accusing the “puppet government” of being worried about Bhutto’s visit for no reason.

“Fawad Chaudhry, Shahbaz Gill and Farrukh Habib are also worried that their leader Imran Khan cannot go to the US without diplomatic immunity because of pending cases in the USA’s courts,” PPP Parliamentarians’ Secretary Shazia Marri had said in response to Gill’s press conference.

Marri had said Bhutto had hope in the strength of the people of Pakistan and it has been proven how General Elections 2018 were stolen from the PPP by creating obstacles in the party’s path.

She had said that it is also on record that those who stole the PPP’s mandate have been admitting that opponents of the PPP have been brought to power through rigging in elections.