Alleged rigging in Karachi’s LG polls: Jamaat-e-Islami, PTI announce to constitute a four-member committee
KARACHI, Jan 21 (SABAH): Jamaat-e-Islami along with Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) on Saturday announced to form a four-member committee to take stock of alleged rigging in the local bodies’ elections in the coastal city of Karachi.
Jamaat-e-Islami’s delegation under the leadership of Engineer Hafiz Naeemur Rehman visited the PTI Sindh Secretariat. The delegation included Osama Razi, Muslim Pervaiz, Salim Azhar and Munim Zafar while the PTI delegation was led by PTI Sindh President Syed Ali Haider Zaidi and included Mubeen Jatoi, Bilal Ghaffar, Arsalan Taj, Saifur Rahman, Raja Azhar and Saeed Afridi.
After meeting of both the parties, Syed Ali Haider Zaidi along with Hafiz Naeemur Rehman while addressing the press conference said that he was grateful to latter and his team that they visited them. “We held a detailed discussion on the issue of local bodies’ polls. We had contact with each other before, during and after holding of these polls. Three days back Zardari mafia had attacked him. Hafiz Naeemur Rehman condemned it,” he added.
There may be a difference of opinion but there should not be oppression, Zaidi said and added that the local government system was the foundation of democracy which produces leadership for the solution of the problems of the masses. “All saw what happened on the occasion of the LB polls on January 21. We have agreed upon constituting a four-member committee wherein two members would be each from PTI and Jamaat-e-Islami to take stock of LG polls,” he added.
After the meeting, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman while talking to media persons said that they had been raising concerns over the appointment of ROs and TROs and added that local government elections were compromised. He added they had also reservations on delimitations but holding local government elections was the need of hour, otherwise they would have delayed the polls for 10 elections.
Forms-11 were not being provided after completing the process of polling and when they were issued then change in results of the elections started to occur, he claimed. “UCs need to be opened for recounting. We had lodged a severe protest on this,” he added.
Moreover, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said they have agreed upon constituting a four-member committee wherein two members would be each from PTI and Jamaat-e-Islami to take stock of LG polls.
Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that the mandate of the winning party should be protected by other political parties. “Everyone’s mandate should be respected but it should be legal,” said the JI leader, adding that his party wants to achieve a consensus for Karachi’s development.
He said that the party already had reservations regarding the constituencies, adding that a lot of people voted for them. He said that they had sent the details to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) as the results were altered. “As per Form-11, the results were changed and while the UCs were also reduced during the recounting of votes,” he alleged.
He added that the whole process of recounting was to benefit the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). “We wouldn’t have any objection if the Peoples Party had won the elections legitimately,” he added.
Hafiz Naeemur Rehman also said that his party is in a position to appoint its own mayor, hinting at forming an alliance with PTI for the appointment of a mayor. “All the political parties are responsible for protecting the mandate of whoever has won,” he said, adding that his party wants to achieve consensus for Karachi’s development.
Speaking about JI’s ties with PTI, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said: “There is a working relationship with PTI as well.” He made the remark in reference to the 2015 LG polls in Sindh. Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that JI has presented PTI with a proposal of appointing Karachi’s mayor unanimously. He further stated that JI would have congratulated PPP if the latter was in a position but the party couldn’t appoint a mayor alone. “JI is in a position to appoint its mayor,” he said. He said that there would be both criticism and redressal if the mayor is appointed from JI.
Speaking about Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan’s (MQM-P) stance on the LG polls in Sindh, Hafiz Naeemur Rehman said that he wanted the party to have participated in the elections.
He, however, said that boycotting the second phase of Sindh’s LG elections was MQM-P’s own decision. “MQM-P made the last ditch efforts to stop the election. MQM-P was speaking about constituencies in order to escape the election,” Hafiz Naeemur Rehman concluded. He also called for the cancellation of the terror cases registered against JI and PTI.