Home Latest News Ruling Coalition Deliberates on ‘Strategy’ for Elections

Ruling Coalition Deliberates on ‘Strategy’ for Elections

P.M. Sharif, PPP’s Zardari and JUIF’s Fazl discuss polls in Punjab, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and resolve to minimize impact of ‘tough’ economic decisions on general public

by Staff Report

Leaders of ruling coalition meeting in Islamabad on Jan. 26. Photo courtesy PID

Senior leaders of the ruling coalition—Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, former president Asif Ali Zardari and Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) President Maulana Fazlur Rehman—on Thursday participated in a high-level huddle to discuss their electoral strategy for polling in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and on seats vacated in the National Assembly after the acceptance of PTI lawmakers’ resignations.

Citing sources who attended the meeting, local media has reported that the political leaders reviewed the prevailing political scenario and deliberated on approaching the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to conduct polls on the basis of a digital census that is scheduled to start on March 1. The census was approved by the ousted PTI government in October 2021 and was initially scheduled to be conducted in October 2022. However, it was first deferred to February 2023 and then delayed by another month to March.

The census would take about a month to complete and another month to finalize the results. It would be followed by fresh delimitation of all constituencies, with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) earlier warning that this could take up to six months to complete. In this scenario, no elections could be held in the country before October.

The PTI has already been sounding the alarm over attempts to delay polls in Punjab and Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa—the party dissolved its governments in both provinces earlier this month and constitutionally they must proceed to polls within 90 days—or mid-April. In the event of any delay, the provinces would continue to be governed by an interim setup, for which critics argue there is no concession within the Constitution. However, according to reports, the ruling coalition has not reached any conclusion on its deliberations and the consultative process is ongoing.

Speaking with daily Dawn, Information Minister Marriyum Aurangzeb rebutted claims that the PMLN was seeking to delay the polls, maintaining that the party was ready for elections. Maintaining that PMLN leader Nawaz Sharif had already instructed P.M. Shehbaz to prepare for the elections, she said the party would soon unveil its parliamentary boards. PMLN Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz is also scheduled to return to Pakistan today, with the party announcing that she will lead the electoral campaign and undertake a reorganization of the party.

Per local media, the huddle also discussed the prevailing economic situation, deliberating on introducing a mini-budget for additional taxation measures. All participants, per the sources, said priority should be given to minimizing the economic impact on a general public already reeling from high inflation.

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