PML-N leans on electability criteria
Setting the strategy for the upcoming general elections, PML-N General Secretary Ahsan Iqbal and Punjab President Rana Sanaullah have announced that a candidate’s electability in his/her constituency comes first, overriding even loyalty and commitment to the party.
The two leaders were talking to the media after a party meeting that took up the matter of awarding party tickets on Saturday. They also announced issuing a show-notice to former PML-N MNA Daniyal Aziz, who recently said that the PML-N general secretary was incapable of controlling price hike in the country.
The former MNA from Narowal, however, remained defiant and demanded from his party general secretary to own up to his blunders. Interestingly, the statement issued by the party after the meeting had no mention of the show-cause notice.
PML-N’s supreme leader Nawaz Sharif led the party's inaugural parliamentary board meeting, marking the initiation of candidate selection for the upcoming elections scheduled for Feb 8. PML-N President Shehbaz Sharif also presided over the meeting held at the party secretariat in Lahore.
The meeting primarily focused on conducting final interviews of election hopefuls from Sargodha Division for both the National Assembly and the provincial assembly.
Dilating about the meeting, the former interior minister said the meeting, that lasted for seven hours, had finalised candidates for almost 70 to 80 per cent constituencies in the division. Refuting rumours of rifts, he said “minor disputes” would be sorted out through achieving a consensus at the lowest tier of the party.
Iqbal said that the parliamentary board interviewed over 100 candidates wherein their profiles, affiliation with the party and their eligibility to the seat for the party were reviewed. He said people from all walks of life had applied for the party ticket. “This shows that the people have tied their hopes with the party.”
He laid out the schedule of next parliamentary meetings that would end on December 19. He said that they wanted to select candidates on merit, after seeing their association with the party, their ability to serve, and most importantly, those who can win.
Explaining on the notion of ability of a candidate to run from a seat, Sana said “electability is the key condition of election”. “The PML-N, while deciding the fate of a candidate, will gauge if he or she has the capacity to win.”
To a question about concerns expressed within the party over the issuance of tickets to new inductees, he said party tickets to electables would only be issued after consultation with the party’s local leadership.
Elaborating on this, Iqbal said in a constituency where the party has loyal, committed workers having the capacity to win, they will be given the first priority, adding in case of a there was a vacuum, tickets would be allotted in consultation with the local leadership.
Re-clarifying the already clarified point, Sana said that the parliamentary board had decided to issue tickets to its committed, dedicated and “winning” workers.
Talking credit of leading the election drive, Iqbal said that the PML-N was the first party that had started preparations for the elections.
Iqbal, while responding to a question about the PPP’s concerns regarding the PML-N’s reported plan to amend the 18th Amendment, said the PML-N had no plan to roll it back. “In fact, the 18th Amendment is an incomplete mission, as it devolves power from the Center to the provinces but it stops there and there is no word of any further devolution.”
Iqbal said they would complete the devolution of power by taking it to the lowest tier of the governance, i.e., the local government. “This is on our party’s agenda.”
Regarding the PPP’s criticism over the PML-N policy, Sana said they have the right to attract voters by taking anti-PML-N stance. “I hope this political rivalry remain civil and the PPP will not resort to foul language and adhere to political norms.”
The PML-N Punjab president also announced that the PML-N has issued a show-cause notice to Aziz for not observing party discipline. Iqbal said he had no idea why he gave the statement against him, but claimed that the allegations leveled against him had nothing to do with his ministry.
Iqbal had reportedly accused Daniyal of holding a grudge against him for stonewalling a ticket in the latter’s constituency to a habitual turncoat.
Aziz, while talking to The Express Tribune, rubbished the allegation of any personal vendetta against Iqbal, claiming that the former planning minister should bring forward the name of a single candidate that he had proposed for the party ticket.
Regarding Iqbal’s denial that it was not his former ministry that was responsible for inflation and price hike, Daniyal shared a link of a presser issued by the Planning, Development and Special Initiative Ministry after a meeting of the national price control and monitoring body.
Daniyal said Iqbal remained at the helm of affairs, presiding over meetings attended by the representatives from all ministries. “Why did he not take up the issue of dollar-rupee parity, high interest rates or gas or electricity price hike with the representatives of the ministries concerned. What was he doing then?”
He said it was his (Iqbal’s) performance that brought a bad name to his party. He said Iqbal, instead of blaming the high inflation on the PTI, should have issued a White Paper to justify who was at fault. “Merely blaming the PTI for inflation does not cut it with the voters anymore,” Aziz added.
He said that the party should be cognizant of his services. When asked about the notice, he said that he has not seen the notice. When asked again if he would reply to it or leave it, he said to his knowledge the notice was issued by Sana, who announced it while standing alongside ‘Rana’ Ahsan Iqbal. “These Rana’s” he said.