Presidential election today despite postponement call

Coalition’s strength gives edge to Zardari; rival Achakzai seeks delay until reserved seats issue settled

ISLAMABAD:

All is set for the country to elect its 14th president on Saturday (today), despite a call from Mahmood Khan Achakzai, the chief of the Pashtoonkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP) and the Sunni Ittehad Council’s (SIC) candidate, for postponing the vote.

The last presidential election took place on September 4, 2018, in which Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s (PTI) Dr Arif Alvi defeated Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N)-backed Maulana Fazlur Rehman of the Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal (MMA) and Aitzaz Ahsan of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

The president of Pakistan is elected through a secret ballot by an electoral college comprising members of the Senate, the National Assembly, and all four provincial assemblies. Voting is held in the National Assembly, the Senate, and the provincial assemblies.

The current ruling coalition, comprising the PML-N, the PPP, and the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P), has backed former president Asif Ali Zardari, the co-chairman of the PPP. Given the strength of coalition parties, the election result is a forgone conclusion.

The required support and numbers are there, and it is going to be just a formality to elect Zardari, known as the ‘king of reconciliation’ and the one who knows that art of making the impossible possible, as president for the second time in a few days.

Achakzai is Zardari’s lone rival in the contest. In a letter to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Friday, Achakzai highlighted the issue of vacant reserved seats for women and minorities in both the national and provincial assemblies.

The PkMAP chief argued that proceeding ahead with the election without filling these seats would be a violation of the law and the Constitution. “The election should be postponed until the electoral college is completed,” Achakzai stated.

Furthermore, Achakzai revealed that the SIC had submitted an application to the Peshawar High Court (PHC) regarding the reserved seats. However, there has been no change in the ECP schedule for polling, which will be held on Saturday (today) from 10am to 4pm.

Incumbent President Dr Arif Alvi is the country’s fourth democratically elected president to complete the five-year term. The three others were fifth president Fazal Elahi Chaudhary, from 1973 to 1978; 11th president Asif Zardari, from 2008 to 2013; and 12th president Mamnoon Hussain, from 2013 to 2018.

At present, Alvi is on an extended tenure after completing his five-year term on September 9 last year. Article 44(1) of the Constitution says that the president will hold office for a term of five years from the day he assumes charge, but he continues to hold the office until a successor is chosen.

This makes Alvi the first president to have an extended term due to an incomplete electoral college, as the National Assembly as well as the provincial assemblies stood dissolved when his term in office had concluded.

Meanwhile, the PPP continued the campaign for the re-election of Zardari for a second term. Party Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari spent a busy day meeting party leaders, first in Lahore early in the day and then throwing a reception for parliamentarians at the Sindh House in Islamabad.

In Lahore, Bilawal also met with Punjab Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz after hosting a meeting with the Punjab Assembly members from coalition parties. In Islamabad, the reception hosted by Bilawal was also attended by Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif and the parliamentarians belonging to the coalition parties.

Moreover, a PPP delegation led by former prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani also met with Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman and urged him to revisit his party decision of boycotting the presidential election and vote for Zardari.

The president acts as a ceremonial figurehead. Though the president has no direct authority in running the government, he can directly grant pardons and reprieves, appoint higher commands in the military with support from the prime minister, and confirm judicial appointments, among other things.

Under Article 41(3) of the Constitution, the president is elected in a special session of parliament, the Senate, and all four provincial assemblies. The Electoral College of 692 votes from lawmakers includes 96 senators, 336 members of the National Assembly, and 260 votes from the four provincial assemblies.

Currently, the total number of lawmakers is 1,181, which includes 96 senators, 336 MNAs, and 749 legislators of the provincial assemblies. In order to ensure equal representation of the provinces, each provincial assembly is given 65 votes, equal to the smallest house in Balochistan.

The MNAs, senators, and Balochistan MPAs' votes are counted as one vote for each member. But with 371 MPAs, Punjab’s 5.7 members equal one vote; Sindh’s 2.58 members make one vote; and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa’s 2.2 members vote is counted as one.

Being the joint candidate of the upcoming ruling parties and having majority seats in Sindh and Balochistan assemblies, Zardari – who has earned the reputation of being the one who can turn the tables anytime – is set to enter the Presidency with an overwhelmingly majority.

SIC parliamentarians

Meanwhile, in a parliamentary meeting of the SIC, the opposition lawmakers were briefed on the presidential election as their hopes to clinch the highest office in the country remained tinged with anticipation.

During the meeting, it was stated that Achakzai would secure the votes of all assembly members affiliated with the SIC. However, concerns were raised about potential foul play in the voting process. “A government ally is going to get votes from the stolen mandate,” said Rana Aftab Ahmad Khan.

In a tribute to mark International Women’s Day, the parliamentary party honoured the resilience of women, who have faced adversities in their political struggles. Rana Shehbaz, the SIC chief whip, lamented the alleged theft of women’s seats from the SIC despite ongoing legal battles.

Similarly, expressing dissatisfaction with the proceedings, Malik Ahmad Khan Bhachar remarked on the hasty administration of oaths despite the unresolved matter of reserved seats currently under court scrutiny.