City prepares for NA-133 by-polls

Electioneering in constituency enters final phase

LAHORE:

Major political opponents ie the Pakistan Tahreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) are all set to flex their muscles on a National Assembly seat in NA-133 that fell vacant after the death of PML-N leader Pervaiz Malik.

Electioneering in the constituency has entered its final phase. Workers and supporters of the PML-N, Pakistan Peoples’ Party (PPP) and independent candidates are conducting the door-to-door campaign and asking for votes for their respective candidates. Pre-poll hustle and bustle is being witnessed in the offices of almost all candidates, especially the PML-N’s Shaista Pervaiz Malik.

PML-N women wing also organised a public rally in UC-232 in favour of their party’s candidate Shaista Pervaiz Malik, widow of Pervaiz Malik.

They displayed high spirits by chanting slogans in favour of their party and candidate and claimed that the lion (PML-N’s election symbol) will once again roar in NA-133 on Sunday. They stressed that Lahore is and will always remain the stronghold of the PML-N despite the propaganda of the opponents.

Although the PTI government had initiated dozens of development schemes in the constituency ahead of by-elections to support his party’s candidate.

Several roads and streets had been dug by the different government agencies for laying sewerage and water lines but apparently, it all had gone waste as the ruling party’s candidate has been disqualified on technical grounds and his appeal has been earlier rejected by the election tribunal and later by the high court.

A survey of NA-133 and results of previous polls shows that after the disqualification of the ruling party’s candidate, the PML-N has the strongest position in the constituency.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, various citizens highlighted that it would be tough competition between PTI and PML-N if the ruling party’s candidates were not disqualified intentionally or unintentionally. Now it will be a one-sided affair and PML-N’s Shaista Pervaiz Malik will win her husband’s seat if polling remains fair and peaceful.

Results of previous polls show that the PML-N had already won this seat thrice. First PML-N’s Naseer Bhutta bagged NA-133 in 2008 with a margin of over 32,000 votes, later PML-N’s Waheed Alam Khan won again in 2013 with over 100,000 votes and Pervaiz Malik in 2018 with 89,699 votes.

Pakistan Awami Tahreek supremo Dr Tahirul Qadri won elections from NA-133 in 2002 after taking 24,949 votes. PPP candidate Aslam Gill could hardly manage to get 5,000 in the previous general election and his position is not much different from this too, claim political pundits of the area.

The National Assembly’s NA-133 is a constituency is comprising of areas of Liaqatabad, Model Town Ext (Q, R and S blocks), Pindi Rajputan, Ismail Nagar, Kot Lakhpat, Chungi Amar Sadhu, Teharta Pind, Bagrian, Green Town, Township, Maryam Colony, Sitara Colony and Farid Colony. The majority of these areas belong to middle- or lower-income groups and have basic problems of cleanliness, sewerage and water supply. Hardly any development is witnessed in these areas after the dissolution of 2002’s local governments. Despite their loyalty to different political parties, citizens of the NA-133 constituency still recall 2002’s local governments which rebuild almost all roads and streets in this constituency. It has three provincial assembly seats and 21 union councils.

By-election in NA-133 has been scheduled for Sunday. The Punjab government has also allowed the deployment on Rangers for the security of the polling process.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 4^th, 2021.