Bilawal rejects corruption claims over Sindh housing scheme, offers audit
PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday rejected corruption allegations over the Sindh housing project. He proposed an international audit and accused opponents of a smear campaign.
- Bilawal Bhutto Zardari denied corruption in the Sindh People's Housing Scheme.
- He asked Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to invite international organisations to audit the project.
- He said one million homes have been completed for flood-affected families.
Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari on Tuesday rejected corruption allegations surrounding the Sindh People's Housing Scheme. Speaking in Karachi, he accused political opponents of running a campaign to damage the Sindh government's reputation.
Bilawal called for an international audit of the project and urged Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah to write to international organisations and invite them to examine it. According to the Daily Times, he said an independent review would help address allegations about the project's funding. "I can confidently say that no corruption has taken place in this project," Bilawal said, as quoted by The Express Tribune.
On the progress of the scheme, Bilawal said the Sindh government had completed one million homes for flood-affected families. He said the programme aimed to build two million homes and referred to a wider target of five million houses. He said the project gave families permanent houses and land ownership rights, and that ownership was registered in women's names.
He said the federal government had told international financial institutions that provincial governments were corrupt, but that the World Bank expressed confidence in the Sindh government and released funds for the housing project. He contrasted this with Balochistan, where he said only 30,000 houses had been built over three years.
Bilawal also spoke about relations with the federal government. He said a former prime minister had told the PPP that Sindh did not belong to his government, while Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif had at least not made the Sindh government feel that way. He said the PPP had met the prime minister's team and both sides assured each other of continued coordination.
He said political parties needed to work together rather than fight one another, and referred to criticism of the political system from Lahore's business community. He also said 50 per cent of educational institutions had been destroyed in 2023.
Background
khabr.pk reported on 2 November that Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah and World Bank Country Director Bolormaa Amgaabazar reviewed 12 active projects at CM House. Their combined commitment is $3.849 billion, of which $2.334 billion has been disbursed.
Why it matters for Pakistan
The housing scheme is aimed at families in Sindh affected by floods, so the allegations and the proposed audit bear directly on them. Bilawal said ownership of the houses is registered in women's names. The World Bank's funding, which he said was released, is part of the wider portfolio the Sindh government has with the lender.
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