Govt seeks unity on simultaneous polls
It isn’t a decision but a ‘one-man show’ that will go down as a dark chapter in judicial history: Joint statement. PHOTO: AFP/FILE
The ruling coalition parties in Pakistan have reiterated their commitment to holding free, transparent, and impartial elections, the results of which would be acceptable to all to protect the country from falling into political instability.
In a recent high-level consultative meeting at the Prime Minister House, the leaders of the coalition parties discussed the country's political situation in detail and held consultations on the future strategy on constitutional and legal issues.
The meeting chaired by Premier Shehbaz Sharif was informed that ensuring credible and transparent elections is a fundamental constitutional requirement.
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The participants noted that the election results must be acceptable to all parties, and the country must not suffer from any new political instability as a result of the election process.
To achieve this goal, the meeting unanimously decided to convene a summit meeting of the ruling parties after Eidul Fitr.
The purpose of the summit is to discuss and agree on the finalisation of the method for holding general elections on the same day under the caretaker governments across the country as per the constitutional procedure.
The coalition parties stressed the importance of taking the national process of consultation with all the parties inside and outside parliament to the next stage.
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The meeting made it clear that the process of pre-consultation and negotiations regarding the holding of elections was ongoing among the coalition parties. To this end, the prime minister had already formed a committee to oversee the process.
The participants also reiterated their commitment to engage in meaningful, serious, and constitutionally bounded negotiations. They emphasised that as politicians, they had never closed the doors of negotiations to anyone, nor could any democrat do so.
Moreover, the coalition parties held meetings with Pakistan Peoples Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, Pakistan Democratic Movement chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman, and Jamaat-e-Islami chief Sirajul Haq to discuss the process of pre-consultation and negotiations regarding the holding of elections.