Nawankot: 25-year old running for vice-chairman

If elected, he says he will set up a helpline for residents’ complaints

LAHORE: Muhammad Hanan Chaudhry, a 25-year-old law graduate, is enthusiastically running a door-to-door campaign for vice chairman in UC 89.

Chaudhry has a ticket from the Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N).

“Our party supports youngsters. My candidature is clear evidence of that. The party leadership preferred me over several people who dismissed me as a kid. I will do my best to come up to the expectations of my party and our supporters,” he said.

“If we get elected, we will start a toll-free helpline to register residents’ complaints. We will have our representatives in all the wards to resolve their problems at their doorsteps,” he said.

The union council has 20,000 registered voters. It comprises areas of Samanabad Mor and Nawankot. PML-N’s Muhamamd Bashir Lala is in the run for the chairman. Lala has previously been associated with the Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q).

Some PML-N workers in the constituency have expressed unhappiness over the decision to award him the ticket.

“The party leadership ignored some senior workers in awarding the ticket to Lala. We are not expecting a stiff opposition from the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) here,” a PML-N office bearer from the union council said.

He said a PML-N worker, Saleem Chaudhry, was running as an independent for chairman after he was refused a ticket by the party.

From the PTI, Dr Hamid Qureshi is the candidate for chairman’s slot and Shabana Safdar for vice chairman.

“A tough competition is expected here as the PML-N vote bank stands divided over the decision to award the ticket to Lala,” said Muhammad Abdullah, a resident of the area.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 26^th, 2015.