LG polls — more of the same

In Punjab, the ruling PML-N got the lion’s share of votes, bagging more than both independent parties and PTI combined

November 19 saw the second phase of the local government polls, and by noon of November 20, the picture was clear. In Punjab, to the surprise of nobody, the ruling PML-N got the lion’s share of the votes, bagging more than both the independent parties and the PTI combined. Although some results have yet to be officially confirmed, the PML-N has 382 seats, the independents 262 and coming in a distant third was the PTI with 112 seats. This mirrors the first round of polling and confirms both the strength of the PML-N’s grip on Punjab politics and the waning star of the PTI.

There were reports of clashes between rival groups of political supporters, women were excluded from voting by direction of local jirgas in a number of places and the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) won itself zero votes as it postponed elections in 76 local councils in Sindh because of disputes about delimitation. The ECP has had years to prepare for these elections and might have been reasonably expected to be better prepared than it was in some places.

Sindh saw the PPP poll well as expected, though it did not have a clean sweep, with their alliance in Hyderabad failing to win voters and a considerable upset in Badin; where Zulfiqar Mirza’s dissident jiyalas took all 14 seats of the Badin Municipal Committees. Independents took at least 120 seats, the MQM took 90, and once again, the PTI trailed badly taking a mere 13 seats. Just how much difference these elections are going to make either to the quality of governance or to the advancement of democracy nationally is something of an open question. There was considerable resistance on the part of the major parties to the local government elections because of the threat they may pose to their top-down politics. It is now to be seen what, if any, powers have truly been devolved to those voted to local bodies, and just how beholden to political big beasts they are. Democracy, forever a work-in-progress.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 21^th, 2015.

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