ISLAMABAD – In an Independence Day message, Pakistan People’s Party chief Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that only democracy values freedom. Adding that there was no other system that guarantees respect for human dignity and development of mankind.
He congratulated the nation and said that “ours is a dynamic young nation, which is well aware of the value of its independence. The nation knows how to protect its freedoms, and has inherited this commitment from the independence movement, a peaceful political struggle.â€
Bilawal said that under the leadership of Quaid-e Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, our forefathers had shed the shackles of imperialism and saved future generations from all persecution, religious and otherwise.Â
“Our forefathers sacrificed so that we could enjoy our freedoms – of worship, of speech, of expression, of association; so that we could have the power to hold governments accountable through the power of the vote, and have justice without delay,†he added.
The PPP chief said that foresight and self-accountability are the attributes of living nations. “We need to see why everyday items like flour, sugar and petrol are still under the control of the mafia today,†he maintained.
He said that even on 73rd Independence Day people were questioning why state resources were being used to suppress freedom of expression of the media and political opponents, instead of eradicating hunger and poverty.Â
“Why are newspaper headlines becoming the basis of balance in the scales of justice? Why do dictatorships and ideologies of necessity keep coming up every few years? Why is Pakistan still struggling to live up to the vision of its founder, Quaid-e-Azam Muhammed Ali Jinnah,†he questioned.