Bilawal says provinces issue must end, centre should focus on Karachi

Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari has said the issue concerning provinces should be put to rest, stating that the people of Sindh have already given their verdict, and urged the federal government to focus on Karachi as the country's economic hub.

He was speaking at a ceremony during a visit to Spencer Eye Hospital in Karachi's Lyari area, ARY News reported. Both ARY News and Dunya News carried the visit.

Bilawal said the country was facing a historic crisis and that the government should provide relief to people dealing with rising inflation and unemployment. The Sindh government, he said, was making efforts to reduce the financial burden on the public, and the aim was to give people free treatment. Everyone faces health problems at some point, he added.

He said patients were already receiving free treatment at Spencer Eye Hospital and urged people to visit the facility for free eye care. Expressing pleasure at the hospital's operations, he said he was happy to see the Karachi Metropolitan Corporation (KMC) working, adding that KMCs like this one were rarely seen.

Bilawal also raised the growing problem of load-shedding in Karachi, saying the hospital had been shifted to solar power because of electricity shortages, and that the government wanted to solarise the entire Lyari area.

On the PPP's position on provincial issues, he said it was clear and that the matter had been discussed seven to eight times in the Sindh Assembly.

Asked about the proposed 28th Constitutional Amendment, Bilawal said the federal government had not held any discussions with him on the matter. He criticised those who promote hatred and division among the public, saying they had little to show for their work despite being in the federal government. He added that the PPP would help if the federal government wanted its support.

Earlier, Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab said Spencer Eye Hospital in Lyari had fallen into decline and had been shut down in the past. He said the hospital had been made operational again under a public-private partnership model and was now performing 60 to 70 cataract surgeries every week, running on solar power and providing free medical services to patients.