Bilawal denies immediate plan to join politics

ISLAMABAD: Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Thursday spoke for the first time in many months, only to categorically deny the prevalent impression created by a section of the media that he was to launch his political career over the weekend by attending a public meeting in Birmingham.

A statement issued by him in London, and forwarded by a PPP spokesperson in Islamabad, quoted him as saying that neither he has any immediate plans to join active politics, nor was he going to Birmingham to participate in a public rally.

“In fact, I will not even be attending the (Birmingham) event and instead I will be opening a donation point at the Pakistan High Commission in London for victims of the terrible floods which have ravaged northern Pakistan,” the statement said. President Asif Zardari and late Benazir Bhutto’s son was recently being tipped as the rising star of PPP politics, and there were widespread speculations that the present UK trip was aimed at launching him in active politics.

“I felt it was necessary to issue a statement to counter some inaccurate information that has recently been reported,” Bilawal Zardari said while denying any real intention of entering the political arena. “As for my future plans, I intend to continue my education both academic and political.”

Elaborating, he said, “I am currently looking into the possibility of studying law, just as my grandfather Shaheed Zulfikar Ali Bhutto did. I feel that an understanding of law and an appreciation for the rule of law is important for any politician seeking to strengthen democracy in Pakistan.”

Bilawal Zardari further said that he had been inundated with requests from the British Media for interviews, but he declined.

“Following my mother’s assassination, the press had kindly agreed to allow me to continue with my education without being disturbed. I hope this courtesy will be extended until I complete my further education as well. I do look forward to working with the media, the international community and most importantly the people of Pakistan in the future to achieve our shared goals of strengthening democracy in Pakistan and combating the forces of extremism that robbed me of my mother and threaten the world today,” the statement said.
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