PPP leader Qamar Zaman Kaira on Wednesday defended the Benazir Income Support Programme (BISP) as a “tried and tested” method for providing flood relief, while criticising what he called the “harsh tone” adopted in recent exchanges between his party and its coalition partner, the PML-N.

“In the past few days, such questions have been raised that now a dialogue has begun, which, in our understanding, is not appropriate. It is neither beneficial for politics, nor for democracy,” he said at a press conference in Lahore.

“And this is our [PPP’s] view, not a suggestion to anyone,” he added.

The PPP and PML-N continued to engage in a war of words over flood relief, as PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari asserted that the BISP was the “sole method” of providing relief to those affected by the recent floods in the country, while PML-N’s Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz accused his party of “politicising” the issue.

Furthermore, the tensions between the ruling coalition partners on Tuesday flared in parliament as the PPP lawmakers stayed away from the National Assembly and Senate sittings to protest CM Nawaz’s diatribe against their party.

“This is the first time that we decided to help the government without taking ministries in the government … without sharing power in the executive,” Kaira said at the press conference.

“We did this so that the government, with unity, could resolve the country’s problems, and we could support it,” he added.

He continued that his party would support the federal government in every possible way.

“[We have] supported it on every issue, when Pakistan was at war we supported it, in assemblies we supported it, we supported legislation, we did no favour; we do not keep count of favours. We did this thinking that we must find solutions to the country’s crises. Otherwise, there were formulas for power sharing, formulas for terms … many formulas were discussed.”

However, he added that the purpose was not to give the federal government “a blank cheque that whatever it does, whatever the PML-N does, we will support it“.

“If our opinion proved better, they would accept it; if their views proved better, we would accept it. Otherwise, we would come to a middle ground and find a compromise, that is the method. We have tried this so far and will continue to do so.”

But he regretted that in the “last few days, a two-way dialogue began and on one side of that dialogue are some colleagues of the PPP and on the other side, the Punjab government”.

He said the recent floods caused immense damage, people’s homes were looted, crops destroyed, and human lives as well as livestock were lost.

“Wherever there was any mistake, or where we thought there might be a better way to do the work, we gave our suggestions; if our suggestions were not accepted, we criticised [the move]; if we were not heard, we protested — this is our democratic right. And this is also the way.

“If you do not accept it, if you do not want to do that, then fine, but we will tell the people of Punjab, we too are Punjabis. We will tell the people of Punjab that in our view this crisis has both immediate and long-term solutions. We will present our ways based on our experience.”

Criticising CM Maryam’s remarks, he said: “Now if we give our suggestions and you do not listen and if we criticise [you], you say that you will not allow anyone to speak … and that if a finger is raised here, you will break it and you will not spare them.

“We only offered ways to deal with the floods, but in response, the Sindh government was targeted. Some objections were very painful. We were accused of an electricity subsidy [and] other matters.”

We know the present government is not at fault, but there are certain objections. The PPP chairman said that on the devastation caused by the floods, people must be given immediate relief, and that can be done through the BISP. That is a tried and tested method we have, and the other thing is that [you] should declare an agricultural emergency.”

He continued that the BISP has now become a subject of debate; some want money to be disbursed through it, others do not.

“So the cash grant under BISP is for immediate relief; it provides initial relief. And this is not the first time we have done this in 2023, 2022, 2010, 2011; such amounts were used for the flood-affected people. You did not accept that idea, that’s okay. We only give you our opinion.”