- Solangi again rejects notion of any delay in upcoming general elections scheduled for Feb 8
PESHAWAR/ISLAMABAD: As general elections on February 8 approach and the political parties have started their campaign, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Governor Ghulam Ali on Sunday said it is difficult to carry out political activities in parts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan due to the security situation.
“There is no doubt the situation in some areas such as Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, Lakki Marwat and Bannu is not good while a similar situation persists in Balochistan as well,” Ghulam Ali said during in an interview with a private Tv channel.
The KP governor said general elections in the aforementioned areas may be held but reiterated that it was difficult to carry out political activities there.
“The government and state institutions will make efforts because elections should be peaceful,” the governor stated, stressing that it was the government’s duty to take the voter to the ballot box safely.
The recent increase in terror activities, particularly after the Tehreek-i-Taliban Pakistan ended its ceasefire with the government, has resulted in a 34% rise in anti-state violence in the country.
Khyber Pakhtunkhwa has been the most affected province, with 51 attacks causing 54 fatalities and 81 injuries, while Balochistan recorded nine attacks resulting in 18 fatalities. Governor Ghulam Ali acknowledged the difficult situation in areas such as Tank, Dera Ismail Khan, Lakki Marwat, and Bannu, as well as in Balochistan.
When asked if Ghulam had put the situation in front of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), he replied that the provincial government was responsible for doing the same.
“Some incidents have taken place recently […] every day our jawans are being martyred, but thankfully a big incident has not taken place yet.
“The provincial government and institutions are responsible for sitting together and preparing a strategy for the way forward,” the KP governor said, adding that Pakistan should swiftly move towards polls while keeping the political and economic situation in view.
Talking about the PTI’s claims regarding the lack of a level-playing field, Ghulam said the party’s objections were not valid and pointed out that it had recently held a number of rallies in KP.
“It is not good for anyone to make the election process suspicious,” he added.
At a workers’ convention in Swabi on Saturday, PTI workers had alleged that the KP government had adopted a discriminatory policy against the party in flagrant violation of the Constitution.
PTI Vice President Sher Afzal Marwat had said that while all other parties were allowed to run the election campaign, hurdles were created for PTI, crippling its campaign.
Solangi rules out delay in elections
Meanwhile, Caretaker Minister for Information and Broadcasting and Parliamentary Affairs Murtaza Solangi on Sunday vehemently rejected the notion of any delay in the upcoming general elections scheduled for February 2024.
“Holding elections is the responsibility of the Election Commission and the caretaker government will fully assist the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) in this regard,” the minister said while talking to a private television channel.
He said the caretaker government was fully prepared for holding free, fair and transparent elections in accordance with the schedule issued by the ECP.
Every political party has a right to express its views and all of them wished to have a level playing field in accordance with their own whims, Murtaza Solangi emphasized.
Both the conditions and environment, he said, were conducive for elections and all political parties were actively engaged in political activities.
To a query, he said the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) demanded transparent election and ironically it did not want democracy within its own party which was reflected from its own intra-party polls that were marred by controversy.
