Turf war: Opposition joins hands to keep ruling party out

Alliances being forged to avoid splitting votes, keep PML-N from winning seats.

RAWALPINDI:

It remains to be seen whether opposition parties will be able to keep the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) from regaining the ground they lost in Rawalpindi in the upcoming local government elections. The January 30 polls are expected as they claim to do. In many constituencies neck and neck competition is expected.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaaf (PTI) district president and member provincial assembly (MPA) from Rawalpindi Arif Abbasi told The Express Tribune that the PTI has decided to make seat adjustments with all the opposition parties to ensure PML-N’s defeat.

“We have almost finalised seat adjustments with other parties. All opposition parties including Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), Awami Muslim League (AML) and Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) are united against the ruling party.”

In the general elections, PTI won one national (NA-56) and three provincial assembly seats from Rawalpindi.

According to a survey conducted by The Express Tribune in the district, major opposition parties are cozying up to each other in a bid to give tough time to the PML-N. Negotiations among the major political players are underway to field unanimous candidates, with the PTI and JI — coalition partners in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa — leading the talks.

The PTI and Sheikh Rashid Ahmed-led AML were never as aligned on the issue of selection of the candidates as they are now. Political pundits believe the opposition alliance could give a tough time to the PML-N in at least 55 union councils (UCs) of Rawalpindi Municipal Corporation. However, in the rest of the 100-plus UCs across the district, the PML-N will hold sway.

When contacted, PPP city president Amir Fida Paracha said that in some UCs, the party’s local leaders have made seat adjustments with PTI and JI on their own. He, however, said that the local chapter is waiting for a green signal from the central secretariat regarding party policy in local government elections.

Meanwhile, Local Government Director Allah Ditta Najmi told The Express Tribune that the government has completed delimitation for the Rawalpindi Metropolitan Corporation, district council and municipal committees for upcoming elections.

He said that under the new local government law, urban areas would come under the administrative control of the metropolitan corporation, whereas rural areas would come under the administrative control of district councils.

Najmi said the mayor and deputy mayor would head the metropolitan corporation, while chairmen and vice-chairmen would head municipal committees and district councils. Six tehsils — Taxila, Murree, Gujar Khan, Kotli Sattian, Kallar Syedan and Kahuta — will have municipal committees.

Candidates of various political parties have started canvassing to gain maximum possible support for themselves. Banners and posters have emerged on various roads and streets, but full-fledged campaigning has yet to start.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 12^th, 2013.