On the 12th death anniversary of Shaheed Benazir Bhutto, we remember her for her strength and eloquence, for all those times that she stood as the epitome of grace and resilience – a remarkable political leader (serving as the first lady to be head of state to a Muslim country in the year 1988), a loving mother and a true patriot. Here are some of the many times that she stood true to the Bhutto name (whether as a standing leader or as an exiled one), she had much grace and eloquence in every speech she ever gave:
1.Her address to the National Assembly after she successfully defeated the No Confidence Movement
Even after the opposition parties tried their best to upend her government through a movement of No Confidence, she did not resort to name calling or bullying, and instead, with much grace, uttered the following words: “I assure everyone that we (the government) bear no ill will towards the members of the opposition, Honourable Speaker,” she said.
2. “My death will be the catalyst of change”. She was a truly brave leader with unwavering strength.
3.Even after her and her government were ousted for the second time in 1996, her faith and belief in the system never faltered. In a press conference, she stated with much conviction “If there is justice in this land, we will not lose in the court”.
4.When she proposed an accountability bill where she demanded every person be liable to accountability.
“I presented an accountability bill but the President didn’t like my accountability bill. Because I said everybody must be tried – the president, the bureaucrats, the judges, the businessmen, private citizens. He said how can you try judges? I said why! A prime minister can only be removed by a vote of 109, if two judges can remove a prime minister, why can others not remove?”
It is safe to say, that as a leader and an individual, Benazir Bhutto was ahead of her time.