The outcome of 11th May polls must be satisfying for Washington as it wanted a friendly government in Pakistan ahead of the NATO and American troops withdrawal from Afghanistan by the end of the next year. Besides, the American administration also cherished the desire of seeing an end to Chinese authorities’ involvement in Gwadar port after a contract with that country by the outgoing Pakistan People’s Party government in February this year. The presence of China at the head of Arabian Sea to provide Pakistan a trade corridor to the landlocked Central Asian Republics was something that Washington could hardly digest. The Americans may be eyeing this target to be achieved with the rise of Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N to power.
The Sharifs ascendance to power may also satisfy the Tehreeik-i-Taliban Pakistan as a friend at the helm of affairs of the country they have been devastating for decades. The Taliban picked up the momentum during the Musharraf regime and took religious extremism and militancy to new heights during the PPP’s five-year tenure. There now seems a strong possibility that the Taliban may scale down their campaign in most parts of the country except tribal areas where they are pitched against the country’s security forces. Ironically, Washington and the Taliban are showing signs to be soft on the PML-N government in waiting. The twin-nexus also succeeded to effectively sideline major progressive and liberal parties - the PPP, the ANP and the MQM -- to leave no impediments in Nawaz Sharif’s way in accomplishing his agenda.
All these fears came true when Mr Sharif said at a news conference at his palatial Raiwind Road home in Lahore on Monday that his government’s top priorities would be to mend fences with India to enhance trade and boost friendship with the United States. He did not at all mention what was his plan were about China’s involvement in Gwadar port project, neither he talked about the Pak-Iran gas pipelines and relationship with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization countries, also initiated by the PPP government.
Simultaneously, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf has demanded recounting of votes in 25 constituencies in the country. Party chief Imran Khan told reporters from his hospital bed on Monday that the PTI had collected ‘concrete’ evidence of sophisticated rigging in polls and this was being sent to the Election Commission. Meanwhile, the PTI’s protest is continuing at a busy crossing of Defence area in that city seeking re-election in NA-125 where Khawaja Saad Rafiq was returned in the midst of controversies. Khawaja was shown losing from this area against a PTI candidate in more than 200 polling stations till midnight on Saturday and the morning transmissions said he had won. The PPP has already alleged that elections in Punjab, particularly its southern districts, were rigged.
Meanwhile, Free and Fair Election Network which monitored polls along with some 40 more NGOs, has pointed out gross irregularities in the conduct of elections. It said there were some 49 polling stations across the country where the turnout was reported to be 100 per cent and at one of them situated in Nowshera it was recorded at 271 per cent of the actual registered votes. The NGO wanted that the ECP place statements of vote count of all polling stations on its website before certifying any final result of a constituency.
When so many parties are complaining of serious irregularities in the conduct of polls, and some of them are claiming to have collected irrefutable proofs, the CEC must accept the responsibility. The Election Commission has apparently placed the whole gigantic polling exercise under a serious doubt, by failing in convincing most of the population that elections were fair, free and transparent. The people had reposed their trust in the person of Fakharuddin G Ibrahim but this was apparently shaken.
No doubt, the coming days will see process of election petitions in the tribunals.
But the tribunals must not linger the important litigation as had been happening in the past that some petitions remained undecided even up to the announcement of the next election. The ECP in the meantime should, at least, not include votes of the polling stations with over cent per cent turnout in calculation of results and consider re-polling at these places.
Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Pakistan's Rigged polls & Nawaz
The outcome of 11th May polls must be satisfying for Washington as it wanted a friendly government in Pakistan ahead of the NATO and American troops withdrawal from Afghanistan by the end of the next year. Besides, the American administration also cherished the desire of seeing an end to Chinese authorities’ involvement in Gwadar port after a contract with that country by the outgoing Pakistan People’s Party government in February this year. The presence of China at the head of Arabian Sea to provide Pakistan a trade corridor to the landlocked Central Asian Republics was something that Washington could hardly digest. The Americans may be eyeing this target to be achieved with the rise of Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N to power.
The Sharifs ascendance to power may also satisfy the Tehreeik-i-Taliban Pakistan as a friend at the helm of affairs of the country they have been devastating for decades. The Taliban picked up the momentum during the Musharraf regime and took religious extremism and militancy to new heights during the PPP’s five-year tenure. There now seems a strong possibility that the Taliban may scale down their campaign in most parts of the country except tribal areas where they are pitched against the country’s security forces. Ironically, Washington and the Taliban are showing signs to be soft on the PML-N government in waiting. The twin-nexus also succeeded to effectively sideline major progressive and liberal parties - the PPP, the ANP and the MQM -- to leave no impediments in Nawaz Sharif’s way in accomplishing his agenda.
All these fears came true when Mr Sharif said at a news conference at his palatial Raiwind Road home in Lahore on Monday that his government’s top priorities would be to mend fences with India to enhance trade and boost friendship with the United States. He did not at all mention what was his plan were about China’s involvement in Gwadar port project, neither he talked about the Pak-Iran gas pipelines and relationship with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization countries, also initiated by the PPP government.
Simultaneously, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf has demanded recounting of votes in 25 constituencies in the country. Party chief Imran Khan told reporters from his hospital bed on Monday that the PTI had collected ‘concrete’ evidence of sophisticated rigging in polls and this was being sent to the Election Commission. Meanwhile, the PTI’s protest is continuing at a busy crossing of Defence area in that city seeking re-election in NA-125 where Khawaja Saad Rafiq was returned in the midst of controversies. Khawaja was shown losing from this area against a PTI candidate in more than 200 polling stations till midnight on Saturday and the morning transmissions said he had won. The PPP has already alleged that elections in Punjab, particularly its southern districts, were rigged.
Meanwhile, Free and Fair Election Network which monitored polls along with some 40 more NGOs, has pointed out gross irregularities in the conduct of elections. It said there were some 49 polling stations across the country where the turnout was reported to be 100 per cent and at one of them situated in Nowshera it was recorded at 271 per cent of the actual registered votes. The NGO wanted that the ECP place statements of vote count of all polling stations on its website before certifying any final result of a constituency.
When so many parties are complaining of serious irregularities in the conduct of polls, and some of them are claiming to have collected irrefutable proofs, the CEC must accept the responsibility. The Election Commission has apparently placed the whole gigantic polling exercise under a serious doubt, by failing in convincing most of the population that elections were fair, free and transparent. The people had reposed their trust in the person of Fakharuddin G Ibrahim but this was apparently shaken.
No doubt, the coming days will see process of election petitions in the tribunals.
But the tribunals must not linger the important litigation as had been happening in the past that some petitions remained undecided even up to the announcement of the next election. The ECP in the meantime should, at least, not include votes of the polling stations with over cent per cent turnout in calculation of results and consider re-polling at these places.
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