[🇵🇰] Pakistan General Elections -- 2024

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I would vote for Fazlur -ur-Rehman.

At least he is better than Nawaz Sharif or PPP

 

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Parties deny representation to transgender community​

WISAL YOUSAFZAI/ASIF MAHMOOD/RAZZAK ABRO
JAN 31, 2024

Despite their progressive manifestos, no political party has offered a ticket to a candidate of the etherized gender

 

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Editorial: ​

What new depths will the state plumb as it makes clear its antipathy towards Imran?​

For now, we may only spectate as institutions bend to the will of those who think that no elected leader deserves a free pass.

Double down​

Editorial
February 1, 2024

TWO verdicts in two days. A 14-year sentence for ‘corruption’ to accompany a 10-year sentence for ‘divulging state secrets’. First, his top lieutenant, and now his spouse also convicted and jailed.

And still, former prime minister Imran Khan’s troubles are far from over. What new depths will the state plumb as it makes clear its antipathy towards him?

The days leading up to the Feb 8 elections may hold more ‘surprises’. For now, we may only sit and spectate as facts, procedures, laws and institutions bend to the will of those who think that no elected leader deserves a free pass — until they decide they do.

Mr Khan and his wife, Bushra Bibi, have been convicted for under-declaring the value of a jewellery set they received as a gift while the former was still in office. The verdict has been delivered via an accountability court judge who, just days before the last general election, had also convicted this year’s front-runners in the Avenfield reference.

That judgement was overturned in November last year. Most commentators believe this one will not last too long, either. Incidentally — or perhaps by design — the same judge is also supposed to hear a similar case involving items retained from the state’s gift repository. The matter involves several cars allegedly retained by Messrs Nawaz Sharif, Yousuf Raza Gilani and Asif Ali Zardari in violation of Toshakhana rules.

 

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Central KP — The ‘kingmaker’ of the province’s politics​

The Peshawar valley and central KP is the key that can open doors of power for those who succeed in winning over voters.

 

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Khyber candidates counting on their tribal affiliations, personal clout​

Ibrahim Shinwari
February 1, 2024

KHYBER: Tribal affiliations and personal influence of candidates have taken precedence over their political associations or ideological bonds in election campaigns here.

They are seen in videos soliciting votes from people on the basis of their tribe and sub-tribes and demeaning opponents for being part of rival tribes.

With the general election in one National Assembly constituency NA-27 and three provincial assembly constituencies PK-69, PK-70 and PK-71 just a week away, some candidates are reminding tribesmen of how much attention they as lawmakers paid to the development of their areas by neglecting other localities or tribes.

They’re little interested in promoting the political parties that fielded them and are helping them canvass “to an extent.”

Tribal district has one NA, three PA seats

Political observer Khiyal Mat Shah Afridi, who is a former councillor, insisted political ideologies and election manifestos were “conveniently” ignored by candidates of almost all major parties.

“Organisational structures of most parties are very weak in tribal districts, while the local electorates prefer someone from their own tribe instead of an alien imposed on them,” he told Dawn.

 

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Pakistan has fifth-highest number of registered voters in world: report​

The Newspaper's Staff Reporter Published February 1, 2024

ISLAMABAD: The unprecedented surge in the number of voters has made Pakistan fifth largest democracy in the world trailing India, Indonesia, United States of America and Brazil.

This is also the first time that Pakistan registered more women voters as compared to men in-between two elections.

This was disclosed by a Fafen Report, titled “Electoral Rolls, General Election 2024” released here on Wednesday.

The report says that with the fifth-highest number of registered voters globally, Pakistan has a record 128.5 million people, constituting over half of its total population, registered as voters on the Final Electoral Rolls (FER) for the upcoming Feb 8 elections, marking a substantial increase of 22.5 million voters, including 12.5 million women, added since 2018.

Fafen calls for efforts to alleviate under-registration of young women

Presently, it says, the number of registered voters constitutes 53.2 per cent of the 241.49 million population. Nevertheless, there are regional disparities in voter-to-population ratios, with Punjab (57 per cent) and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (53 per cent) registering over half of their populations as voters. Sindh and Islamabad have voter-to-population ratios close to 50 per cent, while Balochistan lags behind with 36 per cent population registered as voters.

The voter-to-population ratio can be indicative of potential under-registration with a caveat. The ratio only accounts for voters registered in their native districts and not those who are registered as voters on their temporary addresses outside their native districts.

At the district and constituency levels, the disparity in voter proportions becomes increasingly apparent. Among the 136 districts analysed by Fafen, 78 have more than half of their populations registered as voters, while nine districts, including Upper Kohistan, Lower Kohistan, Kohistan Palas, Kech, Kharan, Panjgur, Sherani, Surab and Washuk, have less than 30 per cent population registered.

A comparable trend is noted at the National Assembly constituency level, with 159 out of 266 constituencies registering over 50 per cent of their populations as voters. The registration of women has experienced an unprecedented increase since 2018, following the implementation of special measures introduced by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in accordance with Section 47 of the Elections Act, 2017.

 

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Election 2024: Students rejoice mid-season 9-day holiday​

All educational institutions will practically remain closed throughout the country from Feb 3 to Feb 11

News Desk
February 01, 2024

As the nation prepares for the upcoming general elections scheduled for February 8, students across Pakistan, on the other hand, are rejoicing after being granted a mid-season nine-day holiday.

On Thursday, the Sindh Education Department announced that all private and public schools, colleges, and universities will remain closed from February 6 to February 9.

The government has already declared February 5 as a public holiday in observance of Kashmir Solidarity Day. Furthermore, February 10 and 11, being the weekend, will provide additional days off for students.

The decision to grant leave during this period has been approved by Sindh's Caretaker Chief Minister Justice (retd) Maqbool Bakar, citing the upcoming general elections.

 

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Politics of disenfranchisement: Why Pakistan’s youth no longer believes in the sanctity of the vote​

With a barrage of challenges awaiting the incoming government, Pakistan’s cyclical dystopia perseveres. Another meaningless election. Another debilitated government. Another divided house. And round and round we go.

Faiq Zafar
February 2, 2024
“Hope is a good thing, maybe the best of things. And no good thing truly dies.” — Andy Dufresne, The Shawshank Redemption

For Rehan Shamsi, 61, hope is a double-edged sword. A seasoned participant in Pakistan’s tumultuous political history, Rehan was but a 25-year-old engineering student in Karachi when the death knell sounded on General Ziaul Haq’s decade-long stint at the country’s helm.

Amid cheers of hope and merriment, Benazir Bhutto assumed the reins of power in the winter of 1988 — an event considered to be a critical inflection point in the country’s long, agonising crusade to democracy. It seemed the sun had finally dawned on a people downtrodden by decades of shattered promises and dead aspirations.

“I don’t think today’s generation understands the optimism that permeated the air in ’88. It was a genuine moment of hope. I know it sounds idealistic now, but you have to understand where we were,” reminisced Rehan. An active member of the National Students Federation and a worker of the Qaumi Mahaz-e-Azadi Party in the 80s, he vehemently believed in and campaigned for Benazir’s Movement for the Restoration of Democracy (MRD).

 

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Lower-caste Hindus see greater presence​

About a dozen Hindus participating in elections from Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas divisions

Sameer Mandhro
February 02, 2024

KARACHI: Lower-caste Hindus in Pakistan are carving a niche for themselves in the political arena, boldly stepping into the electoral fray on general seats.

The surge in participation is particularly pronounced in the Mirpur Khas division, home to districts such as Mirpurkhas, Umerkot, and Tharparkar, where a majority population of non-Muslims, especially Hindus, resides

About a dozen Hindus are participating in elections from Hyderabad and Mirpurkhas divisions, with a key focus on NA-215 Mithi, NA-213 Umerkot, and PS-45 Mirpurkhas. Notably, all three candidates in these constituencies are up against Muslim opponents.

In NA-215 Mithi, PPP’s Mahesh Kumar Malani, who secured victory in the general elections 2018, faces Arbab Ghulam Rahim, a prominent leader of the GDA and former chief minister of Sindh. Local analysts believe Malani, with Hindu voter dominance, is well-positioned to defeat his archrival.

"Malani is a public figure and knows how to maintain a strong connection with the masses," Sajid Bajeer, a journalist based in Mithi, said.In Mirpur Khas’s PS-45, Seth Hari Ram Kishori holds a favourable position despite contending against a Muslim candidate from an upper caste – Syed.

Lower-caste Hindus see greater presence | The Express Tribune

About a dozen Hindus participating in elections from Hyderabad, Mirpurkhas divisions

tribune.com.pk

 

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80 percent polling stations in Balochistan declared ‘sensitive’: minister​

Balochistan’s Interior Minister Zubair Jamali has said that over 80 per cent of polling stations in the province have been categorised as “sensitive,” with 34pc marked as “highly sensitive.”

Only 19pc of polling stations in Balochistan have been identified “normal”, the minister said in an interview with Dawn News programme “Doosra Rukh”.

It is pertinent to mention here that the Balochistan government has also barred political parties from holding rallies and corner meetings.

 

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ECP completes training of 1.49m officials for Feb 8 polls​

The Election Commission of Pakistan says it has completed the training of approximately 1.49 million electoral staff members for the successful conduct of Feb 8 general elections.

In a statement, the ECP spokesperson stated that a total of 27,676 training sessions, engaging 3,821 trainers, were conducted over a span of 87 days.

It said the commission trained approximately 5,000 officers and data entry operators (DEOs) through 148 training sessions before integrating them with the returning officers.