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KARACHI: While Pakistan Peoples Party has put its full weight behind its candidate for Sunday’s PS-114 by-election, and Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan taking the July 9 contest as a test case after suffering the worst-ever organisational and political crises and Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf expecting to regain its 2013 popularity, political observers say that the results are not going to reflect the trend for the general elections due next year.
As the parties enter the last phase of campaigning for the provincial assembly seat, hopes are high for the contesting candidates though this election is no different when it comes to exchange of allegations and counter-allegations between rival parties as their speeches comprise more of such blame games instead of focusing on their own party agenda and manifesto.
The parties currently in the opposition — the MQM, the PTI and the Jamaat-i-Islami — have already raised their reservations about the transparency of the by-poll, hinting at their expected reaction if results go against their hopes. After the recent decision by the Election Commission of Pakistan to deploy army troops and Rangers’ personnel inside and outside the polling stations, their fear of “rigging” on polling day has lost significance. But their reservations about “pre-poll manipulations” by the authorities can still cast doubts about the much-publicised by-election.
Victory of any candidate is by no means a measure of trend for general elections, according to political pundits
The seat was won by the MQM in 1990, 1993 and 2008 elections but the party’s Rauf Siddiqi lost it to Irfanullah Marwat contesting on a seat of the multiparty alliance called National Alliance in 2013. His victory, however, was declared void by the election tribunal in July 2014 and the Supreme Court in May 2017 dismissed Mr Marwat’s appeal challenging the election tribunal’s decision, thus paving the way for the by-poll.
With more than 190,000 registered voters in the constituency and 92 polling stations, it consists of Karachi Administration Housing Society, Baloch Colony, Mehmoodabad, Manzoor Colony, Defence View and a block of PECHS.
Blame game
So far the PPP is viewed to have the highest stakes in the constituency as it decided to field its key leader and Senator Saeed Ghani, while the ruling party is also carrying out the election campaign with full fervour. In return, it has come under severe criticism and allegations from rivals.
“The PPP is resorting to cheap tactics, but in the [PS-114] by-election our candidate Kamran Tessori will emerge successful,” says MQM-Pakistan chief Dr Farooq Sattar while blaming the ruling party’s Saeed Ghani for using government machinery for his campaigning.
He explains: “On one hand the PPP is using all Sindh government resources for the by-election and on the other our party has not been informed about the details of the returning officers and staff assigned duties at the polling stations by the Election Commission.
“We have conveyed our serious reservations about 11 polling stations but in vain.”
PPP’s secretary general for Karachi Mr Ghani, who has preferred the provincial assembly’s seat over the Senate’s, blames the MQM for using the municipal administration in the same way and calls the MQM allegations as part of their campaign to justify the “feared loss”.
“Despite all the crises and recent past experience, the MQM unfortunately has not learnt anything,” he said.
“They follow the same decades-old policy — attack and blame others. We have been peaceful and running our campaign in line with democratic norms. The MQM’s campaign on the other hand is being run by the municipal administration led by the city mayor. They fear loss and are making grounds for that defeat,” said the PPP candidate.
As the Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan (Noorani) and Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) have decided to support Mr Ghani, Jamaat-i-Islami, with its candidate Zahoor Ahmed Jadoon, is the only major religious party contesting the PS-114 by-poll.
PTI claims to have Marwat’s support
The support for Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) candidate Najeeb Haroon comes from the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F).
“Roping in the PML-F was a part of the PTI’s strategy to bring all opposition parties in Sindh on one platform,” claims PTI secretary general Jehangir Tareen while explaining reasons behind the party’s recent understanding with the PML-F for PS-114. “The PML-F’s support would help a great deal the PTI’s election campaign. We are here to stay. People have tested all and got dejected. PTI is their last hope. We’ll never betray them.”
Interestingly, the PTI has managed to convince Mr Marwat, the former PML-N leader and candidate for the same seat in 2013, after a series of meetings with him to support their candidate in the by-election.
Significance of by-election
However, despite all political alliances and manipulations, the political pundits and analysts Dawn interviewed do not see the results of PS-114 by-election to have any impact on the general elections due next year.
“The results would not have any reflections of general elections,” says Dr Jaffar Ahmed, former director of the Karachi University’s Pakistan Study Centre. “The dynamics of the general elections are absolutely different which one can’t compare with the by-election. But this election is significant due to different reasons for different parties. The MQM is facing such challenge for the first time after the recent crisis of MQM-London and MQM-Pakistan and also the PSP [Pak Sarzameen Party] of Mustafa Kamal. The PPP being the ruling party wants to keep its ground firm and same for the PTI, which needs to be active in Karachi.”
However, Dr Ahmed adds, the results will not indicate any trend for the general elections and the party winning the by-poll cannot claim its popularity is growing in Karachi due to majority votes in this by-election only.
“It cannot even be called a rehearsal of the general elections. The only reason behind much interest and [a] highly-charged [campaign] is the interest of each party in the constituency due to different reasons. None of them can rely on the results of this by-poll for next year’s general elections campaign.”
Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2017
As the parties enter the last phase of campaigning for the provincial assembly seat, hopes are high for the contesting candidates though this election is no different when it comes to exchange of allegations and counter-allegations between rival parties as their speeches comprise more of such blame games instead of focusing on their own party agenda and manifesto.
The parties currently in the opposition — the MQM, the PTI and the Jamaat-i-Islami — have already raised their reservations about the transparency of the by-poll, hinting at their expected reaction if results go against their hopes. After the recent decision by the Election Commission of Pakistan to deploy army troops and Rangers’ personnel inside and outside the polling stations, their fear of “rigging” on polling day has lost significance. But their reservations about “pre-poll manipulations” by the authorities can still cast doubts about the much-publicised by-election.
Victory of any candidate is by no means a measure of trend for general elections, according to political pundits
The seat was won by the MQM in 1990, 1993 and 2008 elections but the party’s Rauf Siddiqi lost it to Irfanullah Marwat contesting on a seat of the multiparty alliance called National Alliance in 2013. His victory, however, was declared void by the election tribunal in July 2014 and the Supreme Court in May 2017 dismissed Mr Marwat’s appeal challenging the election tribunal’s decision, thus paving the way for the by-poll.
With more than 190,000 registered voters in the constituency and 92 polling stations, it consists of Karachi Administration Housing Society, Baloch Colony, Mehmoodabad, Manzoor Colony, Defence View and a block of PECHS.
Blame game
So far the PPP is viewed to have the highest stakes in the constituency as it decided to field its key leader and Senator Saeed Ghani, while the ruling party is also carrying out the election campaign with full fervour. In return, it has come under severe criticism and allegations from rivals.
“The PPP is resorting to cheap tactics, but in the [PS-114] by-election our candidate Kamran Tessori will emerge successful,” says MQM-Pakistan chief Dr Farooq Sattar while blaming the ruling party’s Saeed Ghani for using government machinery for his campaigning.
He explains: “On one hand the PPP is using all Sindh government resources for the by-election and on the other our party has not been informed about the details of the returning officers and staff assigned duties at the polling stations by the Election Commission.
“We have conveyed our serious reservations about 11 polling stations but in vain.”
PPP’s secretary general for Karachi Mr Ghani, who has preferred the provincial assembly’s seat over the Senate’s, blames the MQM for using the municipal administration in the same way and calls the MQM allegations as part of their campaign to justify the “feared loss”.
“Despite all the crises and recent past experience, the MQM unfortunately has not learnt anything,” he said.
“They follow the same decades-old policy — attack and blame others. We have been peaceful and running our campaign in line with democratic norms. The MQM’s campaign on the other hand is being run by the municipal administration led by the city mayor. They fear loss and are making grounds for that defeat,” said the PPP candidate.
As the Jamiat Ulema-i-Pakistan (Noorani) and Majlis Wahdat-i-Muslimeen (MWM) have decided to support Mr Ghani, Jamaat-i-Islami, with its candidate Zahoor Ahmed Jadoon, is the only major religious party contesting the PS-114 by-poll.
PTI claims to have Marwat’s support
The support for Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf’s (PTI) candidate Najeeb Haroon comes from the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional (PML-F).
“Roping in the PML-F was a part of the PTI’s strategy to bring all opposition parties in Sindh on one platform,” claims PTI secretary general Jehangir Tareen while explaining reasons behind the party’s recent understanding with the PML-F for PS-114. “The PML-F’s support would help a great deal the PTI’s election campaign. We are here to stay. People have tested all and got dejected. PTI is their last hope. We’ll never betray them.”
Interestingly, the PTI has managed to convince Mr Marwat, the former PML-N leader and candidate for the same seat in 2013, after a series of meetings with him to support their candidate in the by-election.
Significance of by-election
However, despite all political alliances and manipulations, the political pundits and analysts Dawn interviewed do not see the results of PS-114 by-election to have any impact on the general elections due next year.
“The results would not have any reflections of general elections,” says Dr Jaffar Ahmed, former director of the Karachi University’s Pakistan Study Centre. “The dynamics of the general elections are absolutely different which one can’t compare with the by-election. But this election is significant due to different reasons for different parties. The MQM is facing such challenge for the first time after the recent crisis of MQM-London and MQM-Pakistan and also the PSP [Pak Sarzameen Party] of Mustafa Kamal. The PPP being the ruling party wants to keep its ground firm and same for the PTI, which needs to be active in Karachi.”
However, Dr Ahmed adds, the results will not indicate any trend for the general elections and the party winning the by-poll cannot claim its popularity is growing in Karachi due to majority votes in this by-election only.
“It cannot even be called a rehearsal of the general elections. The only reason behind much interest and [a] highly-charged [campaign] is the interest of each party in the constituency due to different reasons. None of them can rely on the results of this by-poll for next year’s general elections campaign.”
Published in Dawn, July 7th, 2017
