Power void: Political parties in deep slumber as ECP silent on election date

The clock is ticking on the federal caretaker government’s ninety-day tenure but the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is yet to announce a date for holding general elections, with the only indication on a timeline from the apex electoral body being that elections can only be held after delimitations have been done as per the new census.

Resultantly, political parties have fallen into a slumber and refrained from starting their electoral campaigns. Whether this attitude is an acceptance by the political stakeholders that elections are not happening anytime soon or simply a strategic decision to not campaign when the economy is as battered as it is, remains to be seen. However, even if political parties choose to start campaigning soon, they will find that the populace has no interest in elections given the record-breaking electricity and fuel price hikes, which have led to nationwide protests.

Furthermore, they will also come to realise that when elections do happen, they might have to form a coalition government with several other parties, as no party seems to have a clear majority. The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which rode an unprecedented popularity wave ever since former prime minister Imran Khan was ousted, now stands broken with many of its electable candidates jumping ship post the May 9th riots and its Chairman presently behind bars in Attock. Whereas, the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N), which has long considered Punjab’s GT Road belt its stronghold, has lost its political capital given the economic decisions that the party had to take whilst in government via former finance minister Ishaq Dar and former prime minister Shahbaz Sharif.

Moreover, the party’s supremo Nawaz Sharif has consistently delayed his return to the country and has seemingly alienated the party’s workers and supporters. This leaves two other major players on Punjab’s political chessboard - the newly formed Istehkam-e-Pakistan Party (IPP) and the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). The Jehangir Tareen led IPP, albeit new, has managed to attract a majority of the PTI’s deserting crowd, also referred to as electables or electoral heavyweights. However, only time will tell whether these heavyweights can carve out wins without the brand of Imran Khan. As for the PPP, it is solely focused on the South side of Punjab, after its ally in the now dissolved government, the PML-N, refused a seat adjustment offer.

Therefore, the PPP’s current strategy, as per sources familiar with the party’s political manoeuvrings, would be to win about 20 National Assembly seats from the province. The party’s thinking, as per sources, is that multiple wins from Punjab, coupled with seats from Sindh, Balochistan, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (K-P), and a few independent candidates from here and there would land its Chairman, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, the country’s top job. Spokesperson of the IPP, Nauman Langrial, does not understand PPP’s optimism. “The nation knows that the PTI, PML-N and PPP, did not do anything for them. All three have left behind a poorly run economy, where inflation reigns supreme and we have to rely on foreign loans for survival,” criticised Langrial, further adding that no one would vote for any of the parties.

“The IPP has a complete road map to root out inflation and we will highlight this once we hit the campaign trail,” Langrial assured. However, General Secretary of the PML-N Lahore chapter, Khawaja Imran Nazir, believes that only his party can rescue the populace from its current troubles. “We sacrificed our political capital for the mistakes of the PTI and our voter knows this. Once the party starts campaigning, everyone will realise that the PML-N remains Punjab’s most popular party,” remarked Nazir while talking to The Express Tribune.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 4^th, 2023.