Local govt by-poll win strengthens PPP’s position in Karachi

By securing the majority of the seats in the local government by-elections held in Karachi on Sunday, Sindh’s ruling Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) has further solidified its position in the city council to be formed shortly for electing the next mayor of the provincial capital.

Though the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) is at the third position in terms of winning the union committees (UCs) in Karachi, it is likely to play a decisive role in the incoming city council for the election of mayor and deputy mayor.

The PPP secured seven of the 11 UCs where by-elections were held in the city, while the Jamaat-e-Islami was the runner-up after winning the remaining four UCs. However, the JI is again dissatisfied with the poll results, and the party is most likely to challenge the victory of the PPP’s candidates in a number of UCs where the by-elections were held.

The compilation of the election results shows that the PPP has retained its position as the single largest party after the by-polls, since the party’s candidates have won a total of 98 UCs in the city.

The JI stands runner-up in the city council to be formed in Karachi with 87 seats, while the PTI is at the number three position with 41 seats. It seems that the process of political negotiations, and wheeling and dealing for grabbing the coveted post of Karachi mayor has entered its final phase. Both the PPP and the JI have been persisting their claim to the city’s mayoral post.

Options are open to the JI leadership in this regard: it can decide to enter into an alliance with either the PPP or the PTI for securing a comfortable majority in the city council. A party needs at least 124 seats (reserved seats not included) in the city council to secure the desired majority for winning the mayoral poll.

PTI Karachi President Aftab Siddiqui maintained that except for the PPP, his party’s doors are open to all the other political entities for holding talks after the LG polls. He claimed that the PTI’s support in this regard would play a decisive role in the upcoming mayoral election, saying that whichever party would get the PTI’s support would win the election for mayor.

After emerging as the single largest party in the city, the PPP is likely to get up to 49 reserved seats in the city council, the JI is likely to secure 42 reserved seats and the PTI would get around 20 reserved seats.

After winning seven UCs, the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz is likely to get two reserved seats in the city council. The results of the elections held in six UCs in the city are still withheld by the Election Commission of Pakistan.

CM thanks People

Sindh Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah has expressed his gratitude to the people of the province for reposing their confidence in the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) in the local government by-elections and said now the “Jiyalas” of the late Benazir Bhutto would become mayors of metropolitan and municipal corporations in Sindh, including Karachi, and chairmen of other district councils.

“I am thankful to the people of Karachi for acknowledging the services of the PPP government in Sindh by voting for the Peoples Party in local bodies election,” he said in a statement issued by the CM House on Monday.

Shah also extended congratulations to President Asif Ali Zardari, Chairman PPP Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and party workers on securing a landslide victory in the local bodies elections in Sindh.

He said that the people from Kashmore to Karachi and Karachi to Tharparkar had voted for the PPP in the elections. “Your confidence in our party is the manifestation of the services our party and the government have been rendering to the people without discrimination,” he said.

Shah said that the first and utmost task was the restoration of law and order in Karachi, which had affected all kinds of activities, including social, educational, and business sectors. “After the restoration of law and order, we started the reconstruction of roads, underpasses, flyovers, and storm water drains,” he said.

Shah said that he had been fighting for the rights of the people of the province in the issues related to the NFC award, water share, census and development projects in the federal PSDP (Public Sector Development Programme). “Our leaders have laid down their lives for the rights of the people and democracy,” he said.

The CM said that during heavy rains and floods, he, his ministers and other elected representatives of the PPP remained with the affected people and served them.

“We have fulfilled our promise of supporting growers in planting the Rabi crop for which financial assistance has been extended for purchasing certified wheat seed,” he said and added that financial assistance was being given to people who lost their houses in the recent floods. He said the PPP’s Jiyalas would become the mayors of Karachi, Hyderabad, Sukkur, Larkana, and Mirpurkhas, and the chairmen of all the district councils in the province would also be workers of the late Benazir Bhutto.

Medical treatment

Meanwhile, the CM said prominent TV artiste Shabiran Channa is an asset to the province, and his government will bear all the expenses being incurred on her medical treatment.

Channa had suffered multiple injuries in a road accident on April 24, 2023, and doctors had advised her to undergo a surgery. The CM directed the health department to make necessary arrangements for her treatment and surgery and report to him.

Karachiites reposed trust in PPP

Sindh Information Minister Sharjeel Inam Memon has said that the people of Karachi reposed full confidence in the Pakistan Peoples Party in the by-elections held on Sunday while acknowledging the complete resolve of the party’s provincial government to transform their city.

Speaking at a press conference on Monday, he said the people elsewhere in the province also overwhelmingly voted in favour of the PPP candidates while acknowledging the utmost commitment of the party’s leadership to serve the residents of the province in the best possible manner.

He told the media persons that the Sindh government of the PPP had been undertaking a number of development projects in Karachi on a fast-track basis. He said the residents of Karachi had acknowledged the work by the Sindh government to transform the city, including the construction of flyovers, underpasses, quick disposal of municipal waste, and launching of modern public transport services.

He informed the journalists that the process of the local government by-elections had been completed in the province in a transparent manner without any unpleasant incidents. Memon said the police and personnel of other law-enforcement agencies were present to tackle any law and order-related situation during the polling. He said the Jamaat-e-Islami should better have spent the money it had on the welfare of the people instead of spending it on running the election campaign of the party.

He claimed that the press conference conducted by the JI Karachi chief at 3pm on Sunday during the polling had violated the electoral code of conduct. He said the Karachi JI emir in his press conference had appealed to the people of Karachi to come out of their homes for voting in favour of his party’s candidates in the by-elections. He said that by conducting such a press conference the JI had acknowledged that its candidates had not been getting votes in the by-elections.

Memon said Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto Zardari had gone to India to attend the meeting of the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation to show that Pakistan fully adhered to the diplomatic norms. He mentioned that PTI leader and former Fforeign minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi had also stated that Bilawal should have gone to India to attend the SCO meeting.

He said that Bilawal had strongly presented Pakistan’s case about the Kashmir problem during his visit to India. He said the ruling party in India had announced head money for Bilawal in view of his courage and bravery. Despite this, the foreign minister went to India and courageously presented Pakistan’s standpoint on the disputed issues.

He said the leaders of the PTI had criticised Bilawal on his visit to India as their party had “received funding from Indian and Israeli lobbies”. He said both India and the central leaders of the PTI had the same viewpoint that Bilawal shouldn’t have gone to India to attend the SCO meeting.

He alleged that PTI Chairman Imran Khan had reaffirmed his loyalties to his Indian donors by criticising Pakistan’s foreign minister.