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Party elections: PTI to hold polls in two months

Published: June 28, 2012

Party will not accept any proposal to postpone the national elections, party’s Punjab information secretary.

LAHORE: 

Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf said it will hold party elections in late August or early September. According to the party’s media managers, everyone, including Imran Khan and Javed Hashmi, will run for the elections.

The party’s membership drive is culminating on June 30. “At the moment our guess is that we have crossed the 3.5 million mark which is very close to our target of four million,” said Andleeb Abbas, the party’s Punjab information secretary.

She said the party will not accept any proposal to postpone the national elections.

She said that PTI will demonstrate if such a situation was to arise

Both the party chief and president, back from a fundraising trip in Europe, attended a rally in Faisalabad on Wednesday. The turnout was disappointing for the party, with estimates placing attendance at 8,000 people approximately.

Published in The Express Tribune, June 28th, 2012.

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Reader Comments (47)

  • Noor
    Jun 28, 2012 - 8:44AM

    Great Step not seen in Pakistan till today

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  • Umer
    Jun 28, 2012 - 8:52AM

    Party elections: PTI to hold polls in two months

    That’s what PTI leadership keep saying but it never happens.

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  • Jun 28, 2012 - 9:06AM

    Where are the PTI bashers now?

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  • Iram
    Jun 28, 2012 - 9:15AM

    Slogan of PTI is change and it is in practice in the party.

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  • Ali
    Jun 28, 2012 - 9:16AM

    Man with the mission, live long IK.

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  • Manzoor Ahmed Khan
    Jun 28, 2012 - 9:21AM

    Imran is always at the wrong place at the wrong time. I have resigned from PTI in protest after i joined in the December 2009 membership drive. He is the John Kerry of Pakistan…Fickle and whimsical….Too much sound and fury…signifying nothing…

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  • sane voice
    Jun 28, 2012 - 9:41AM

    election in PTI………..a farce at best. I mean look at their membership process……..you can have 10 sims and can send 10 messages in different names @ 80022. You got ten members, so much for the number of members of PTI. I am sure voting in party elections, if ever conducted, will be on similar pattern. Good going.

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  • Butt
    Jun 28, 2012 - 9:50AM

    Hopefully the next budget will be presented by the new government. We all know where PPP and PML-N stand. How is PTI going to divide, as percentage for education, social sectors, defense, etc? Would love to have a breakdown from them.

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  • Habib Khan
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:08AM

    It is taking forever for a mini party PTI to arrange elections but they demanding an elected government to have early election. Its called hypocrisy at its height.

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  • Naveed Javed
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:16AM

    HaHa For yet another time!

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  • neltajohn
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:18AM

    What happens if Imran Khan is neither elected as chairman of president of the PTI?

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  • MN
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:20AM

    Both the party chief and president, back from a fundraising trip in Europe, attended a rally in Faisalabad on Wednesday. The turnout was disappointing for the party, with estimates placing attendance at 8,000 people approximately.

    He further said on a talk show, “we are going hold a massive rally protesting against load shedding.” Is 8,000 massive by any means? So much to say for the tsunami revolution… He is too far away from ground reality and common man and yet misguiding people that he is the saviour… So sad…

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  • Yaida M
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:29AM

    Mr.Boycott Khan is the most indecisive ‘leader’ in the history of Pakistani politics – and that is saying something. I won’t be surprised if IK boycotts PTI’s internal elections too. Will somebody tell him that you can’t will an election by boycott?

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  • Abid Baloch
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:52AM

    Momentous step towards real democracy. Hats off to PTI

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  • Irtiza
    Jun 28, 2012 - 11:19AM

    Can anybody tell me the symbol of PTI?

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  • Sikander
    Jun 28, 2012 - 11:47AM

    8000, for a protest rally (and not a jalsa) is a good number.

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  • Israr
    Jun 28, 2012 - 12:10PM

    PTI is the FIRST political party ever in Pakistan to announce party elections. You can criticize them in any way you want but this is a step in the right direction and should be appreciated. Sadly, we are all used to political dynasties and our leaders are some kind of superior beings who seem to have a divine right over everything. They are like a rare rich relative in a poor family who everyone respects even though they don’t benefit anyone. Thats just our social psyche but it needs to change and we have to make our leaders more accountable and approachable.

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  • Acorn Guts
    Jun 28, 2012 - 12:27PM

    3.5 million of 4 million is not “close” You are half a million off … Thats more votes then you’ve ever had!Recommend

  • Maryam
    Jun 28, 2012 - 2:15PM

    But PTI have already promised to hold party elections within two months some where in March of this year. What happened to that promise?

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  • Maverick
    Jun 28, 2012 - 2:28PM

    Time and again Imran Khan claims that vote bank belongs to him on the basis of opinion polls, and in the same breath warns that anything significantly short of sweeping victory, as predicted in opinion polls (according to him) would mean rigging of elections and would result in bloodshed. There is no one in the party, not even the oldies, to guide him that this is not Europe; this is Pakistan where opinion polls mean nothing in the prevailing socio-political set.

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  • Gul Khan Momand
    Jun 28, 2012 - 3:05PM

    @MN:
    @Sikander:
    and 8000 for protest in the stronghold of PMLN, not bad at all.

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  • Zoaib
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:03PM

    Oh my, we are such a confused people. At one end we criticize political parties to no end for being dynasties and not letting leadership emerge from grassroots, and when one of them such as the PTI try to create a precedent of democracy in their party by holding true UC level elections after membership, we again resort to snide comments against the same. Would the people above decide what they WANT? Intra-party elections should be welcomed by all, because eventually once the precedent is set, all other parties would have to follow, only our democracy will benefit, not Imran or PTI…

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  • Pungi
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:08PM

    @sane voice… Members are not just supposed to provide their Names and cities… CNIC number is also required so ur concerns are lame… Obviously one can’t have ten CNIC numbers..!

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  • Fareed
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:20PM

    The only hope for Pakistan. PTI Zindabad

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  • Pungi
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:33PM

    Those ill-informed PTI bashers saying Imran has delayed party elections need to Google about the fact…Imran always said that PTI membership campaign will b carried on till 30 June and then the party elections would b announced…so what’s new this time?

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  • True Muslim Paki
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:33PM

    May i know the exact date please? & will this polls be sort of public, means, all members of the party will vote? Though am not a party member, i follower of Sir Imran Khan..

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  • Aqil
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:38PM

    @sane voice:
    Do you know that you have to send your NADRA ID Number with your name, too? It is not like you are the only person who can think of such an easy and childish way to manipulate the membership process.
    Congrats if you still think you are smarter than all of us…

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  • Aqil
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:42PM

    @Maverick:
    That is why you need to change the existing setup before elections. If free and independent polls show a result, shouldn’t the actual elections result in the same public opinion? Isn’t that a goal we should set for our society, instead of criticizing the only party who is trying for exactly that?!?

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  • Zia
    Jun 28, 2012 - 4:47PM

    @acorn nuts
    thats 87.5% of the target, have some basic mathematics understanding! this is a good score n definitely near the target.

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  • Sajid Mahmood Awan
    Jun 28, 2012 - 5:44PM

    @Irtiza

    PTI’s Election Symbol : Scales (Tarazoo)

    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pakistan_Tehreek-e-Insaf

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  • Freeman
    Jun 28, 2012 - 5:52PM

    3.5 Million is a lot more than I thought. In less than 2 months PTI made more than 2 million members Wow. PTI is now a big party and will kick other family business parties out of the govt in next election.

    Imran Khan said party membership drive will be until 30 June and then within 2 months party elections will be held. Perfect. One and only True democratic political party of Paksitan.

    All other parties are Family business parties.

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  • pakistani
    Jun 28, 2012 - 6:10PM

    @ pungi
    @ Aqil

    please consult the PTI website and ads campgain on TV channels for membership. CNIC requirement isnt mentioned anywhere. Even the following web page provided for membership registeration on PTI website doesnt have any place for entring CNIC. It is clearly a deliberate but quite fine attempt by PTI bo bolster its so called registered members and then claim a huge success.

    http://www.insaf.pk/DRRegistration/tabid/259/Default.aspx?returnurl=http%3a%2f%2fwww.insaf.pk%2fHome%2ftabid%2f36%2fDefault.aspx

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  • Shayan
    Jun 28, 2012 - 6:14PM

    @Manzoor Ahmed Khan…
    It is your right to step back from whatever you decide, if you don’t find the decision fulfilling. But if you had joined any other status quo party and found it better than that of PTI, it is something debateable. Imran Khan is no where near the term ‘ Fickle and Whimsical ‘. He is the man of words, and has never changed his stance.

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  • Shayan
    Jun 28, 2012 - 6:16PM

    @ sane voice
    You cant vote with those 10 SIM Cards

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  • Qamar
    Jun 28, 2012 - 7:07PM

    After the membership stops, party needs time to develop a database of all the members which would take another month or two. So if the elections are held in August or September it is not delay. But some of you would never agree with PTI!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

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  • Qamar
    Jun 28, 2012 - 7:10PM

    About the CNIC; as the first step it was not demanded but whoever become member through SMS will be demanded to subit its CNIC no before party elections

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  • King of Darkness
    Jun 28, 2012 - 10:59PM

    @Maryam:
    Give me a link which shows that it was promised… :)

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  • Salman
    Jun 29, 2012 - 12:41AM

    No wonder the comments – the ones critical or myopic aren’t very popular :p IK is a living legend!

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  • Asad ALI khan
    Jun 29, 2012 - 4:28AM

    My hope this time only IMRAN khan Pti .I really impress member ship Campane

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  • Baloch
    Jun 29, 2012 - 9:55AM

    @Sajid Mahmood Awan:
    Please dont Mislead its Lantern (Lalten) …

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  • Sajid Mahmood Awan
    Jun 29, 2012 - 3:15PM
  • Jun 29, 2012 - 7:10PM

    Identity cards number required cant wont with 10 sims

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  • Waseem
    Jun 29, 2012 - 10:31PM

    @sane voice:
    you can’t understand that registration is just for updates the voting system is not introduced till now.Recommend

  • ARSLAN
    Jun 29, 2012 - 11:58PM

    its so sad that that ppl always keep criticizing a party never came in power…if IK is bad or confused..what abt those illiterate and pathetic rulers who have fooled us for 6 decades..instead of supporting imran for his effort of doing something never done before ppl just criticize him..as its the easiest thing to do…instead of facing the real music n stand against this corrupt status quo..plz wake up before its too late n get united…!!

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  • zafar bhatti
    Jun 30, 2012 - 10:41AM

    @MN:
    8000 were those present at ghanta ghar :) and it is not a big place :) the people who actually participated were more than 30000 :) but even if they were 8000 you must keep in mind, it was a protest :) and the number of people were m ore than a pmln’s big jalsa :) do you wanna see yesterdays rally of shahbaz sharif in gujranwala :) just check the express newspaper front page which has shown the pic :)

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  • zafar bhatti
    Jun 30, 2012 - 10:45AM

    even if they were 8000, then for a protest in such a heat, was it really disappointing :)

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  • M.ASHRAF SADIQ
    Jul 16, 2012 - 7:22AM

    leading from the front .
    IK.

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