ECP yet to share full data of Hyd districts
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has issued tentative data of polling stations and staff for six out of nine districts of Hyderabad division for the second phase of local government election, scheduled for July 24.
The statistics of the polling stations and staff in Badin, Thatta and Sujawal districts have not yet been released. The details about the number of election candidates based on their political affiliations are still awaited.
In a brief statement, issued late on Monday by the Regional Election Commissioner, Ali Abdullah Khalid, the ECP denied delay in the process as being reported by the media.
According to him, the forms VIII have been sent to Karachi for publishing the ballot papers.
As per the statistics, there are 1.1542 million registered voters in Hyderabad where 820 polling stations, comprising 2,530 polling booths, will be set up for 160 Union Committees and 640 wards of Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (HMC) which encompasses the entire district.
Likewise, 912,472 voters are registered in Dadu district, 472,722 in Jamshoro, 449,324 in Tando Allahyar, 415,547 in Matiari and 348,619 in Tando Muhammad Khan.
Some 661 polling stations and 2,046 polling booths will be established in Dadu district, 452 and 1,399 in Jamshoro, 324 and 1,165 in Tando Allahyar, 383 and 1,142 in Matiari and 272 and 834 in Tando Muhammad Khan.
As many as 4,157 nomination papers were filed in Hyderabad while the number of contesting candidates is 3,412.
Some 23,004 forms were received in Dadu, 1,707 in Jamshoro, 1,132 in Tando Allahyar, 1,069 in Matiari and 857 in Tando Muhammad Khan.
The number of contesting candidates in those districts are 1,446, 979, 828, 763 and 493, respectively.
The HMC includes nine Town Municipal Corporations including Nerun Kot, Mian Sarfaraz, Paretabad, Shah Latifabad, Sachal Sarmast, Qasimabad, Hussainabad, Tando Jam and Tando Fazal.
There are 18 union committees each in Nerunkot, Mian Sarfaraz, Paretabad, Shah Latifabad, Qasimabad and Hussainabad. The TMC Sachal Sarmast consists of 19 UCs, TMC Tando Fazal 17 and TMC Tando Jam 16.
Similarly, the District Council Dadu has 66 Union Councils. There are also Dadu, Khairpur Nathan Shah, Mehar and Johi Municipal Committees; and Phulji Station, Sita Road, Radhan Station and Thariri Mohabbat Town Committees in the district.
Jamshoro consists of the DC with 30 UCs; MCs Kotri, Bolhari and Sehwan Sharif; and TCs Jamshoro, Sann, Maanjhand, Bhan Saeedabad and Thana Bula Khan.
In Tando Allahyar the DC is based on 26 UCs while there is also MC Tando Allahyar and TCs Nasarpur, Sultanabad, Chambarh, Sanjar Chang and Pyaro Loond.
The DC Matiari has 30 UCs. Matiari MCs Hala and Matiari; and TCs Khyber, Odero Lal Station, Bhit Shah, Hala old and Saeedabad. A DC with 28 UCs, MC Tando Muhammad Khan and TCs Bulri Shah Karim and Tando Ghulam Haider are in Tando Muhammad Khan district.
Unopposed
In Hyderabad, at least 80 candidates have been elected unopposed on the 800 seats of chairman, vice chairman and ward councilors. They include 16 chairman and vice chairman as well as 64 councilors.
All of the 16 chairmen and vice chairmen belong to the Pakistan Peoples Party, which has already won 10 per cent of the 160 seats of chairmen and vice chairmen.
Likewise, 58 out of the 64 unopposed councilors are from the PPP. Three others are candidates of Pakistan Tehreek-e- Insaaf and one each belongs to Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan and Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan.
There are four UCs where all the chairmen, vice chairmen, and councilors have been elected without a contest.
Published in The Express Tribune, July 6th, 2022.