A photo of Pakistan army. PHOTO: AFP
HYDERABAD: The Tameer-e-Hyderabad Ittehad, a 10-party alliance to contest the upcoming local government polls, has demanded deployment of army at the polling stations to prevent rigging in the elections.
They demanded the Election Commission of Pakistan to deploy the armed forces in Hyderabad to ensure transparency and prevent rigging and disorganisation, said a statement issued on Thursday.
The Pakistan Peoples Party, Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Pakistan, Pakistan Muslim League - Nawaz (PML-N), PML-Functional, Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Jamiat-e-Ulema-e-Islam-Fazal, Awami National Party, Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party and Hindu Panchayat are part of Tameer-e-Hyderabad Ittehad.
Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaaf and Sunni Tehreek have also been invited to join but PTI's stance is still unclear. While one set of the party leaders claimed they have formally consented to the coalition, others are opposed on the grounds that they do not want to shake hands with the Pakistan Peoples Party.
The party could not make a formal announcement even after the visit of PTI's provincial coordinator Dr Arif Alvi on Wednesday, although Alvi seemed to have tacitly nodded in favour of the alliance. "We have devolved the decision-making for the seat adjustments to the district-level leadership," Alvi told The Express Tribune. "For Hyderabad, [district organiser Khawand Bux] Jahejo will decide any seat adjustments."
But in the same breath he added; "The PTI's policy is very clear. There can be no alliance or seat adjustment with the Muttahida Qaumi Movement and the Pakistan Peoples Party because one of them is involved in terrorism and other in financial terrorism."
Before declaring the alliance on September 4, the JI hosted a meeting of political parties a day earlier. Usman Kennedy and Syed Ahmed Rashid represented the PTI at the meeting. While the former agreed to the alliance, the latter objected on the basis of what he referred to as the policy of not allying with the PPP and the MQM.
"We will not join forces with the PPP but we are open to the seat adjustments," Jahejo replied ambiguously. Meanwhile, Kennedy appears eager for the coalition because it will challenge the MQM's domination mainly in the City and Latifabad talukas of Hyderabad.
"We have become part of it on the invitation of the JUP and JI," said Kennedy. But Rashid, in contrast, contends that he adheres to the kernel of the PTI's policy that explicitly disallows an alliance with the PPP or MQM.
On Thursday, the Ittehad called a meeting to finalise electoral candidates for Hyderabad Municipal Corporation, which include 96 union committees of City and Latifabad talukas. Zahid Bhurgari, the PPP district president, told The Express Tribune that they will select the candidates in a day or two so that the parties can issue them tickets.
The PTI representatives failed, however, to attend the meeting. Kennedy, upset by absence of representation, hoped they have time till September 30, when the PTI will give the party tickets to its candidates, to contemplate joining the group.
"We don't even have 50 candidates to field on the 500 seats," claimed Kennedy satirically. "Teaming up with them will not only make the Ittehad stronger but it will prevent the exposure of our organisational weaknesses."
Kennedy is not the only critical voice in PTI's Hyderabad chapter. Many other leaders find the party structure in disarray. "There is no shortage of Imran Khan's supporters in Hyderabad but we do lack workers whom we can field in the contest," said a PTI leader, who sought anonymity.
Published in The Express Tribune, September 11th, 2015.
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