2013 general elections: Electoral body’s report vindicates PTI, says Imran

Warns NADRA officials against manipulating poll results.

ISLAMABAD:

A day after the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) published a long-delayed review of the 2013 polls on its website, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) chairman Imran Khan said that his party stands vindicated as the report endorses its allegations of massive rigging in the elections.

In the Post-Election Review Report 2013, the ECP admitted serious shortcomings in the electoral process giving credence to rigging allegations. The commission, however, disowned the report on Tuesday saying it was a “summary of the recommendations received from various stakeholders”.

“The [ECP] report has now confirmed that the 2013 elections were massively rigged,” Imran told his followers from atop his custom-built container at Islamabad’s D-Chowk. The PTI workers have been camping in the federal capital for the past 40 days calling for the prime minister to step down.



The ECP printed extra ballet papers which, according to Imran, “paved way for the PML-N to get its desired results by rigging the polls in various constituencies.”

“After the ECP revelation we have detected another lie of [PM] Nawaz Sharif,” said Imran, who claimed that the coming Friday will witness a historic crowd of his followers in Islamabad, followed by another massive show in Lahore on Sunday. “We will also set electricity bills on fire at Minar-e-Pakistan,” he added.

The PTI chief also warned top officials of the National Database Registration Authority (NADRA) against manipulating the election results. “Acting Chairman of NADRA Imtiaz Tajwar, who is involved in manipulation of results, could be tried under Article 6 of the Constitution,” he said.

Imran reiterated his allegation that former chief justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry had facilitated the PML-N get desired results in the elections. The PTI chairman warned that he would expose Iftikhar Chaudhry’s alleged role in rigging if he [Iftikhar] pursued the defamation suit against him [Imran] in the court. He called Iftikhar Chaudhry ‘Mir Jaffar [traitor] of Pakistan’s democracy’.

Earlier, PTI Vice Chairman Shah Mahmood Qureshi accused the government of dragging its feet on the ‘stalled talks’ with the PTI and Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT). The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz should break the deadlock and discuss all issues, including allegations of rigging and electoral reforms, because the PTI believes in a comprehensive dialogue, Qureshi told a news conference in Islamabad.

“Why has the government not announced the proposed commission to look into rigging yet,” he asked. “The government wishes to continue ruling the country with its rigged mandate.”

Flanked by MNA Shireen Mazari, PTI Secretary General Jahangir Tareen and other senior party leaders, Qureshi also asked why the ECP did not publish the review report even as it had been prepared in December. He added that the report endorsed his party’s stance on the scale of rigging in the 2013 elections.

The ECP report is a charge sheet against the top poll body, Qureshi said. “The ECP report admitted that there were problems with printing ballot papers. The fudging process during the last elections started from here,” he added.

“The nation wants to know why the government failed to take action against those who polluted the elections.” He also commented that ECP managerial staff was in some cases unable to reach polling stations due to the lack of transport.

The ECP scrutiny cell was not functional and never probed rigging allegations, Qureshi said. The modern electoral system provided by the United Nation Development Programme was a complete failure despite billions of rupees of investment in it.

There was discriminatory treatment when it came to extending the polling time, he observed. “Time was extended at some polling stations and was not extended at others,” he said.

Additionally, the PTI leader said the caretaker setup failed to handle the ECP managerial staff as polling started late at hundreds of polling stations nationwide. Qureshi also questioned why the required magnetic ink was not used in the elections. “Has the ECP held anyone responsible for not using magnetic ink?” he asked.

Published in The Express Tribune, September 24^th, 2014.