Activists roam around streets, urge people to register votes
Pakhtunkhwa party’s Sindh chapter is carrying out this campaign in Pashtun neighbourhoods.
PHOTO: FILE
KARACHI:
With loudspeakers fitted on the top of mini vans, the activists of Pakhtunkhwa Mili Awami Party’s Sindh chapter have been roaming the streets of Pashtun neighbourhoods urging people to register their votes.
The awareness campaign was launched following the voters’ verification drive by the Election Commission of Pakistan in Karachi.
“For the past four days our teams are putting up posters on walls, distributing pamphlets and making announcements on loudspeakers in Pashtun areas of the city to tell people about the importance of votes,” said Abdul Ali Ghorghoshti of the party on Saturday.
The campaign will focus on the neighbourhoods of SITE, Orangi Town, Manghopir, Sohrab Goth, Landhi, Sultanabad, Keamari, Shireen Jinnah Colony, Kala Pul, Hijrat Colony, Shershah and Pashtun majority areas of district Central and West. “We have distributed 100,000 pamphlets and 5,000 posters have been have been put up,” said Ghorghoshti. “Party activists take two vehicles to each district, make announcements and ask the people to participate in the voters’ verification drive.”
The party’s Sindh president, Nazir Jan, told The Express Tribune that votes and elections are responsible for all the injustices and backwardness in the Pashtun neighbourhoods. “Nearly half of the Pashtun votes have either been ignored during the registration or their votes have been transferred to Khyber Pakhtunwa, FATA or the hostile areas of Karachi,” said Nazir Jan.
If all the Pashtu speakers fix their votes-related issues in this campaign then they can give birth to new electoral constituencies, he hoped. “If an independent commission looks into development projects in Pashtun areas of the city, they will find out that we live in Ethiopia.”
The party does not care who wins from these areas, but they should work towards development, he added. “On the one side, model towns are being built when we don’t even have drinking water or schools. Some people are claiming they will turn Karachi into Paris.”
He promised that the party will try its best to educate the Pashtuns in Karachi on the importance of votes. “We don’t say that our campaign will benefit only our party, we just want to ensure constitutional rights for Pashtuns who are living in the city.”
On the upcoming elections, Nazir Jan said that they will contest the 12 provincial and six national constituencies. If needed, they can make alliances with other political parties in the city, he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2013.
With loudspeakers fitted on the top of mini vans, the activists of Pakhtunkhwa Mili Awami Party’s Sindh chapter have been roaming the streets of Pashtun neighbourhoods urging people to register their votes.
The awareness campaign was launched following the voters’ verification drive by the Election Commission of Pakistan in Karachi.
“For the past four days our teams are putting up posters on walls, distributing pamphlets and making announcements on loudspeakers in Pashtun areas of the city to tell people about the importance of votes,” said Abdul Ali Ghorghoshti of the party on Saturday.
The campaign will focus on the neighbourhoods of SITE, Orangi Town, Manghopir, Sohrab Goth, Landhi, Sultanabad, Keamari, Shireen Jinnah Colony, Kala Pul, Hijrat Colony, Shershah and Pashtun majority areas of district Central and West. “We have distributed 100,000 pamphlets and 5,000 posters have been have been put up,” said Ghorghoshti. “Party activists take two vehicles to each district, make announcements and ask the people to participate in the voters’ verification drive.”
The party’s Sindh president, Nazir Jan, told The Express Tribune that votes and elections are responsible for all the injustices and backwardness in the Pashtun neighbourhoods. “Nearly half of the Pashtun votes have either been ignored during the registration or their votes have been transferred to Khyber Pakhtunwa, FATA or the hostile areas of Karachi,” said Nazir Jan.
If all the Pashtu speakers fix their votes-related issues in this campaign then they can give birth to new electoral constituencies, he hoped. “If an independent commission looks into development projects in Pashtun areas of the city, they will find out that we live in Ethiopia.”
The party does not care who wins from these areas, but they should work towards development, he added. “On the one side, model towns are being built when we don’t even have drinking water or schools. Some people are claiming they will turn Karachi into Paris.”
He promised that the party will try its best to educate the Pashtuns in Karachi on the importance of votes. “We don’t say that our campaign will benefit only our party, we just want to ensure constitutional rights for Pashtuns who are living in the city.”
On the upcoming elections, Nazir Jan said that they will contest the 12 provincial and six national constituencies. If needed, they can make alliances with other political parties in the city, he added.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 20th, 2013.