Senator Mir Hasil Bizenjo Passes Away at Age 62

Senator Mir Hasil Bizenjo passed away at the age of 62. Bizenjo had been admitted to a private hospital in Karachi for the chemotherapy treatment on August 19, and passed away on August 20 according to his friends and the leaders of the party. He was diagnosed with lung cancer in January 2019 and had also visited US for treatment.

Who was Mir Hasil Bizenjo?

While this name is famous throughout the province of Balochistan since the 1990s, the man was brought under the spotlight during the Federal Government of 2013-2018. Mir Hasil Bizenjo was the Maritime Affairs Minister under the Abbasi government, whereas he was the Minister for Ports and Shipping (the former name of Maritime Affairs) under the Sharif government.

The Senator had been vocal about his democratic stance, which had not wavered since his first election as a candidate from Pakistan National Party in 1990. He was re-elected as a member of the NA in 1997 on the ticket of Balochistan National Party (BNP).

He founded Balochistan National Democratic Party (BNDP), which merged with Baloch National Movement in 2003, and was renamed as the National Party (NP). The party boycotted the 2008 general elections in protest against the issues plaguing Balochistan province. Bizenjo was elected as the President of the National Party in 2014.

For the first time, in 2009, he was elected as a Senator of Pakistan, and re-elected in 2015. At that time, PMLN decided to nominate Bizenjo as the Chairman of the Senate. Since he became a Senator again in 2015, he has been a part of the Business Advisory Committee, Delegated Legislation Committee, Law and Justice, Water Resources Committee, Problems of Less Developed Areas Committee, Senate Finance Committee, and the Aviation Committee.

Known for his stance against violence by the militants, Senator Mir Hasil Bizenjo believed it does not serve the people nor the democracy; the militants should give up armed violence and resolve the issues of the province through politics. However, he did say that the Centre has ignored the Baloch for long and urged that cordial methods be utilised to resolve the province’s issues. He also believed that the Centre should allow Balochistan a fair share from the province’s own resources.

Bizenjo stressed for a quick exit and return of the Afghan refugees, stating that there was now tranquil in Afghanistan and its citizens should now return and help reconstruct their own nation. The NP leader took a firm position on said issue close to the census exercise during late 2016, saying that it should be postponed until all Afghan refugees have gone back to Afghanistan.

Bizenjo was a consistent associate of PMLN at the Centre as well as in Balochistan since it got in a coalition with the party after the 2013 Elections. Addressing PMLN’s defeat in the Senate election, the NP President implied it had been proven that certain ruling forces were above in Pakistan than Parliament.

NP under Bizenjo’s leadership had also called for effective devolution of powers to provinces. When introducing his party’s election manifesto at a press conference, Bizenjo said his party would continue its struggle for financial and political empowerment of all federating units and devolution of power to the union council level.

Mir Hasil Bizenjo was nominated for Chairman of Senate in 2019 and the nomination was backed by his good friend, Nawaz Sharif, who he thanked for this opportunity. However, many of the opposition members voted for the incumbent Sajid Sanjrani.

 

May Mir Hasil Bizenjo rest in peace.

 

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