Why was there an upset in KP elections?

“These local body elections in KP proved that the PTI govt is fake”

   Fazlur Rehman, JUI-F Chief

In Peshawar, as per the tallied results of 515 polling stations out of 521 as the results of six polling station have been withled by the ECP, our candidate Zubair Ali stood first by securing as many as 62,388 votes.By the grace of Almighty Allah Jamiat-e-Ulema-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) has emerged as the leading party in the KP local government elections where our representatives and candidates have received a record number of votes. Our candidates have managed to secure the mayorship of the big cities like Bannu, Peshawar and Kohat. In Bannu, the JUI-F candidate secured the mayoral seat by grabbing 34,434 votes.

He held a wide margin lead of more than 10,000 votes over PTI’s Muhammad Rizwan Bangash who secured 50,659 votes. In Bannu, our candidate Irfanullah Durrani emerged victorious by grabbing 59,844 votes and even in Mardan our candidate Amanat Shah Haqqani stood second by securing 49,938 votes.

These local body elections in KP proved that the PTI government is fake and we should be optimistic about the next general elections.

It has been proved that the words of corruption are used as a weapon and it is about time that defamation and humiliation of politicians should end. Politicians who propagate against politicians are a thousand times more corrupt.

Local bodies elections in KP proved once again that my party (JUI-F) was the single largest party of the province.

This local government election has proved and supported our argument that the previous general elections of 2018 were rigged and JUI-F was and still is the largest party of the province and PTI’s government is fake. Unfortunately, in Pakistan some forces did not want religious parties to come into power due to their ideology.

Why are we unacceptable to the Western world when the United States (US) ‘allowed’ Taliban to take over Afghanistan?

The election results have vindicated our stance that corruption allegations had been used as a tool to victimise opposition parties and it is about time that the practice to defame politicians should end now and JUI-F could run the affairs of the state better than the ruling PTI. The JUI-F members are democrats and our politics is based on principles.

We talk about peaceful politics, the rule of the Constitution and a stable Pakistan.

However, those responsible for the stability of the country have destabilised Pakistan by election rigging. Muslim rulers have a responsibility to protect Islamic education, but instead of protecting the values of Quran and hadith, the rulers of this country want to make them ineffective.

“Their modus operandi was that of a desperately unpopular govt”

Faisal Karim Kundi, PPP Leader

As far as the PTI defeat is concerned in KP’s local government elections, they are claiming now that they have chosen the wrong candidates but the fact of the matter is all of their candidates are relatives (brothers or nephews) of their MNAs, MPAs, speakers and deputy speakers. Let me recall that the PTI used to say if Imran Khan gave a party ticket to a tree or pole even that would emerge victorious. However, this shows that they wanted to do the politics of electables.All political parties go through lows and highs and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) performance is improving across the country including in KP and Punjab were we secured more than 32,000 votes in NA-133 by-polls and more than 15,000 votes in PP-206 Khanewal by-polls.

But they are rejected by the people of KP still they have 1.5 years left in power before the next general elections. It is a fact that JUI-F’s performance has improved and they have secured seats in KP local government elections, I am accepting it.

They PTI are making tall claims but in DI Khan their minister has lost the seat to PPP’s candidate by a heavy margin of 15,000 votes. Their downfall has started already.

PTI members and supporters were caught red-handed in Peshawar stamping ballot papers the night before polling and throughout the polling day there have been reports of PTI ransacking polling stations and attacking polling staff, including women.

The people of KP have rejected them and the opposition has emerged victorious. Their modus operandi in these local government elections in KP was that of a desperately unpopular government as they are resorting to violence and rigging to try and undermine the people’s choice but still they failed miserably in the first phase of local government elections in the province.

We call on the ECP to take action against rigging and ensure free and fair elections.

As PPP leader and party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had said our party would triumph over the ruling PTI in its political stronghold of KP in the next general elections which would send the PTI government packing and restore the rule of genuine public representatives.

For that we of course need to work hard in KP, we are doing that already and in future will improve our performance in the province under the leadership of PPP chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari.

“They broke our momentum, but we are a battlehardned people and party”

Samar Bilour, ANP leader

The party which is in power in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) was nowhere to be seen and even the elections results that government candidates are presenting are indicative of pre-poll election day rigging in which voting was slowed down, women voters were especially harrassed and sent back in the area where the opposition is strong.Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has lost a lot of space and throughout our campaign for the local bodies elections. I have realised that it is a battle between the opposition parties, not between us and the government.

Every sitting Member National Assembly (MNA) and Member Provincial Assembly (MPA) were, at least in Peshawar, provided with a list that would allow them to pinpoint the polling stations in which the opposition parties are strong, who exactly is strong there and which particular party is strong in which particular area.

So, they went about it in a systematic manner and we were not given a level playing field when all the parties were finalising their polling agents, a day before polling day we received the dead body of Umar Khitab Shirani sahib who was shot dead. On the day of election between 11am and 11.30am in Bajaur there was only one suicide bomb attack that on a vehicle that was carrying Awami National Party (ANP) voters to the polling stations with a red flag on it.

They do these things to demotivate our voters and keep them away from the polling stations and unfortunately, this only happens with ANP.

These things upset us, they broke our momentum, but we are a battlehardned people and party, we will not bow down and the more they beat us and the more they push us to the wall, the more determined we will become to get ourselves back together and fight the forces that are not letting us have the right of self determination. We want nothing else and we are as patriotic as the rest of the people.

All we want is the right to our political opinion, nobody can take that away from us.

The statements that came a month prior to the local bodies elections in KP from Prime Minister Imran Khan that he will look into the municipalities himself, were shocking.

When he got involved this time around as well he was served a notice by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for violating the elections laws and he was least bothered about it, and did not know what to answer to give the ECP. Following this other federal and provincial ministers, including MNA Ali Amin Gandapur, were openly stating that in these local bodies elections the people belonging to opposition parties will not even see or receive a penny of funds from us.

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