Bilawal Bhutto, "We Have Lost Our Best Hope But not Our Only Hope"

Bilawal Bhutto, son of Benazir Bhutto, in a press conference today expressed his regret that he could not accommodate all of the request for exclusive interviews. Bilawal said that he was overwhelmed with request for one on one interviews .He later stated that his mother was always open with the press and he would like to continue the good relationship but in moderation He went on to thank the press for the international coverage his mother's assassination had received calling her "A world figure and has received world coverage worthy of her status"

Preemptively answering some common questions Bilawal said that he became chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party because the party needed to maintain a close association with Benazir and also to give hope to the new generation of Pakistani people who are not only looking at this election but also to the future. He clearly stated that despite a lack of political experience, he intends to learn and politics is in his blood.

Bilawal's top priority at this time is to return to Oxford to continue his education saying "Unless I can finish my education and develop enough maturity I recognize that I will never be in a position to have sufficient wisdom to enter the political arena." he also said that with four years at Harvard and four years at oxford, education was Benazir's greatest strengths.

As his father runs the party Bilawal plans to step in "gradually and carefully". for those who do not approve of a 19 year old college student becoming chairman of the PPP he said that the decision was based on the collective will of the party unanimously endorsed by the central executive committee as well as the federal council of the PPP and urged every one to accept that the continued involvement of his family was considered the best thing for the party.

Bilawal thanked Scotland yard for there assistance in the investigation into the death of his mother but added that the party and the family want a U.N. investigation due to the belief that an investigation being controlled by the government does not have enough transparency. He also said that although his mother new the risks she had requested security and if adequate security had been provided she may still be alive. He said he would not comment further on who he believes is responsible due to the ongoing investigation.

During the open questions portion of the press conference one reporter asked if a Bhutto would always lead the PPP to which Bilawal replied "There is a Pakistani saying, how many Bhutto's can you kill, from every house will come a Bhutto." When asked about the future of demacracy in Pakistan he replied "We Have Lost Our Best Hope But not Our Only Hope." One reporter appeared to be challenging the younger Bhutto's authority with such questions as "As a 19 year old who has hardly lived in the country what do you propose you can offer Pakistan, a country of one hundred and seventy million people how can you claim to have any aspiration to lead it" Bilawal replied "I do not claim to have any aspirations, I was called and I stepped up and did what I was asked to do." The reporter continued with such statements as what does it say for a party that it can be handed on like some piece of family furniture and wouldn't it be smarter to wait until you know a little more. At this point someone spoke up and said can we just move on. Despite the challenging nature of these questions the young Bhutto answered strongly while yet maintaining complete self control.

After saying that he understood there are risk but this must be done another reporter asked Bilawal if he feared for his life, he replied “I fear even more for my privacy.” Earlier during the session he had asked reporters to respect the privacy of his sisters and his privacy while he is at Oxford.