LAHORE:
The expansion of the federal cabinet, together with an early reorganization in Punjab, has put speculation about the PPP that formally binds to the government, with experts who affirm that the decision to remain outside the objectives of keeping their possibilities alive to form the next government.
A PPP main leader said that the decision of the party to stay away from the cabinet did not reflect any principle but to maintain its dry dust for the 2028 elections.
Since the formation of the current government, political circles have been filled with speculation when PPP would finally take positions of the cabinet.
However, the last expansion of the cabinet seems to have put the matter in bed, at least for now.
Similarly, in Punjab, reports on an upcoming cabinet expansion were leaked to the media. The provincial information minister, while talking on an online news platform, confirmed that Maryam Nawaz was considering expanding her cabinet.
However, she did not confirm or denied the names that circulated in the media, none of which included PPP leaders.
Speaking to The Express PAkGazette, a PPP main leader admitted that the decision of the party to sit aside was not to take the moral terrain, but a movement calculated to remain in the race for the next general elections.
“There is a belief that, according to the rotation policy, we will form the next government,” said the PPP leader. However, personally he did not subscribe to this notion, arguing that PPP lacks public support, particularly in Punjab.
He pointed out that the PML-N was actively forming the image of Maryam Nawaz with the clear intention of positioning it as the next prime minister. “Waiting for PML-N to do aside for PPP, based on any last arrangement, seems very unlikely,” he calculated.
He added that Maryam was winning traction among voters, and if his impulse continued, PPP’s possibilities to return in the center would be scarce.
To level the playing field, the leader suggested that PPP should bring Aseefa Bhutto Zardari to Punjab’s political sand as a new face, arguing that Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had already been tested and had not been able to move the needle in the province.
“Aseefa Bhutto, under the wing of Asif Ali Zardari, could do wonders,” he said, adding that Zardari, given his age, could not pull the strings on Punjab as effectively as before. At this point, the PPP leader acknowledged that the party was not in a position to shake the boat for the PML -N government, at least for now.
