Country goes to polls amid a myriad of challenges
Pakistan
Country goes to polls amid a myriad of challenges
By Salman Khan
LAHORE –Pakistan witnessed its 12th general election on Thursday. There are plethora of challenges being faced by the country at the moment.
The powers that be grapple with a host of challenges, especially mounting security concerns, which can be borne out by twin blasts in Balochistan a day (Wednesday) ahead of the polls.
Several blasts and attacks on political contenders in the run-up to the polls and tanking economy pose a challenge to country’s security and administrative apparatus.
Also Read: Pakistan votes amid tight security after twin blasts
The government, however, has expressed its resolve to conduct the already delayed general election to ensure smooth transition of power from the caretaker set-up to a truly democratic dispensation.
Number crunching
As many as 12.8 million people are supposed to use their right to franchise to elect members on 265 National Assembly and 590 provincial assembly seats. A total of 166 political parties are flexing their muscles.
More to Read: Over 5,000 running for 265 National Assembly seats
According to the ECP, an upward of 18,000 contestants have thrown their hats in the ring.
Questions abound
Many questions remain to be answered – who will be the next prime minister of the country, how many constituents will turn up to cast their votes, what will be the fate of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf-backed candidates and the incarcerated leaders who have faced a great deal of difficulty in conducting their election campaigns?
One of the glaring aspects of the 2024 election is omission of the most popular party - PTI - whose leader has made last-ditch efforts through social media and technology to galvanise his supporters to “silence the detractors through the power of vote”.
Read More: Pakistan election 2024: A perilous journey to vote
The party, despite insurmountable challenges, decided to be part of the biggest electoral exercise.
ECP arrangements
The Election Commission of Pakistan called an emergency meeting on Wednesday evening to give final shape to the ballot. Earlier, it delivered election paraphernalia to the polling stations besides finalising other arrangements.
According to information, the ECP has set up 90,675 polling stations – 25,320 for men and 23,952 for women - across the country. The number of joint polling stations is 41,403.
In Punjab, 50,944 polling stations (14,556 for men, 14,036 for women and 22,352 joint) - have been established.
The electoral body claims that it printed 260 million ballot papers and successfully transferred requisite material far and wide despite odds. It says it will announce unofficial results of all 859 constituencies on Feb 9 and also issued guidelines for media.
It also issued directions to presiding officers and returning officers to follow guidelines on Form-45 – which shows final vote count of each candidate.
Meanwhile, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) claimed on Wednesday that it had no plan to shut down internet service anywhere in the country.
Election Management System
The ECP has developed an Election Management System (EMS) to provide results. The software designed by a private company will work even without the internet connection.
The system is said to have been developed at a cost of Rs320 million and will be used on the election day, carrying data of Forms 45 and 47 after completion of the election process.
There will be three operators in each provincial assembly constituency and four for the national assembly constituencies.
Every returning officer will be given a laptop and Nadra officials will also be present to feed the data in the system. The laptops will be operating in offline mode on a local area network (LAN).
Also Read: How EMS will ensure fail-safe polling results
The system will display results through multimedia to the public at prominent places by laptops. The presiding officers will share results with the returning officers over mobile phones and submit the results by themselves.
The ECP has often dismissed concerns about risk of EMS hacking and declared it a fail-safe tool.
The heart of Punjab
Lahore is considered a political bastion of mainstream parties and a fierce competition is expected as 1,079 aspirants are contending for 44 national and provincial assembly seats.
As many as 266 candidates are in the fray for 14 NA seats and 813 candidates are vying for 30 PA constituencies.
Key contests in the country
Let’s have a glimpse of some of the sought-after contests in the general election. It goes without saying that denial of contest to the PTI founder – one of the staunchest advocates of transparent elections – makes the endeavour somewhat lackadaisical.
Still, there are few contests to look out for.
PML-N supremo Nawaz Sharif is eyeing the coveted PM office by contesting from two National Assembly seats - NA-130 Lahore where an iron-willed PTI leader Dr Yasmin Rashid is expected to give him a run for his ‘vote’ and NA-15 Mansehra which is considered his 'family' constituency. PPP’s Zar Gul Khan and JUI-F’s Mufti Kifayatullah are in the Mansehra ring.
Read More: 'Independent' candidates leading as provisional results trickle in
PTI's new chief, Barrister Gohar Ali Khan, who is also a counsel for the party founder, is contesting from his native constituency, Buner-10. Bakht Jehan Khan of JI and Abdur Rauf of ANP are also competing against him here.
PPP head Asif Ali Zardari chose to run for election from his native NA-207, Nawabshah seat where PTI's runner-up in 2018 election, Sher Muhammad Rind, is trying his luck as well.
Bhutto family scion Bilawal has thrown his hat in the electoral ring from three constituencies including traditional NA-194 Larkana where Rashid Mahmood Soomro of JUI-F is also contesting.
Bilawal is also contesting for NA-196 Qambar Shahdadkot where he has no tough competitors to challenge him and NA-127, Lahore where another firebrand candidate of PML-N, Atta Tarar, and and PTI-backed Zaheer Abbas Khokhar are also trying their luck.
Mobile phone services must be restored immediately across the country have asked my party to approach both ECP and the courts for this purpose.
— BilawalBhuttoZardari (@BBhuttoZardari) February 8, 2024
PML-N president Shehbaz Sharif is running from NA-123, Lahore and NA-132, Kasur where he has a face-off with PTI-backed Afzaal Azeem Pahat, JI old guard Liaquat Baloch and Sardar Muhammad Hussain Dogar.
President PML-N Shahbaz Sharif has cast his vote. pic.twitter.com/rY3n42yg1j
— PMLN (@pmln_org) February 8, 2024
PML-N's second generation leader Hamza Shehbaz is vying for NA-118 seat where an incarcerated PTI woman, Aliya Hamza, is testing her public support as well.
Social media savvy chief organiser Maryam Nawaz is jumping through hoops in NA-119 where Shehzad Farooq of PTI is said to be posing a serious challenge to her.
JUI-F leader Maulana Fazlur Rehman has rolled up his sleeves to run for NA-265 Pishin where PkMAP chief Mahmood Achakzai has withdrawn in his favour. The Maulana is also contesting polls from his home seat of NA-44, Dera Ismail Khan where PTI's stout leader Ali Amin Gandapur is facing him.
It is worth remembering that the Maulana lost this seat in the last election against Ali Amin Gandapur.
Sardar Akhtar Mengal, chief of BNP-M, is running for NA-256, Khuzdar and NA-264, Quetta. PPP newbie Jamal Raisani is also in the field against him in NA-264.
MQM-P convener Dr Khalid Maqbool Siddiqui is in a gladiatorial contest with PTI's social media wizard Dr Arslan Khalid in NA-248, Karachi.
Affluent IPP chief is throwing his bountiful resources in two South Punjab constituencies - NA-149 Multan where he is faced with a seemingly insurmountable barrier in the shape of PTI's Malik Amir Dogar.
And NA-155 is Tareen's home where PML-N leader Siddique Baloch is waiting in the wings to secure this seat.
JI leader Sirajul Haq is vying for NA seat from his mountainous seat of NA-6, Lower Dir. PTI-backed Muhammad Bashir Khan and PPP's Muhammad Hanif Khan are his competitors here.
Last but not the least is Lahore’s NA-128 where legal wizard Salman Akram Raja promises to give a tough time to IPP’s Awn Chaudhry, who is supported by the PML-N.
