Seven-party alliance a non-starter

ISLAMABAD: The so-called 7-party ‘alliance’ formed with the resolve to jointly contest the forthcoming local council elections in Punjab against the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) turned out to be a non-starter as its most important partner read out its obituary even before its takeoff.
As the representatives of the seven parties announced the constitution of the ‘coalition’, senior leaders of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) quickly distanced from it, to remove any kind of confusion or optimism in the minds of other parties of the grouping.
Asad Umar was the first one to dissociate his party from the coalition a few hours after its establishment was made public. PTI Chairman Imran Khan also stated that no formal alliance has been formed with any political party for the local polls in Punjab.
PTI Punjab Organizer Chaudhry Sarwar, who represented the party in the deliberations of the seven entities, did not carry the proper brief from his leadership otherwise he would not been part of the announcement made by Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) stalwart Manzoor Wattoo with a lot of fanfare that the coalition has been made.
He was unaware of the track record of the PTI, which has always preferred a solo flight and is averse to work out electoral cooperation with any political party. More importantly, it is unlikely for the PTI to break bread with the PPP that it has always lambasted.
Being in the wilderness since long, Wattoo along with his PPP is trying to find some relevance with the purpose of giving a boost to his party. However, his first venture proved to be a complete dud. He is among the leading PPP figures, who have persuaded his party to bury the ‘reconciliation policy’ and choose a warpath against the PML-N.
After the PTI’s walkout from the alliance, the grouping has become largely inconsequential because the six parties left in it don’t have any bright prospects of a better showing in the local elections. They were pushed to the sidelines in the 2013 parliamentary polls and the subsequent by-polls.
The PPP is faced with the worst situation, never experienced in its history, although Bilawal is trying to rejuvenate it by making bombastic statements against the PML-N. The efforts he has made so far have not led to revival of the PPP’s lost glory or improvement of its fortunes in any way. However, the young man is struggling with his father, whose policies are supreme in the PPP, has preferred to be out of Pakistan.
In his latest salvo fired at the PML-N, Bilawal has said that his party would destroy the ruling party in the local elections. “There would be no reconciliation now and the PPP would pose severe resistance to the opponent parties in its future line of action and would inflict heavy defeat on the PML-N. The PPP stalwarts should gear up for a combat and should not let anyone usurp the rights of the poor people.”
The electoral prospects that the other components of the coalition including the Pakistan Awami Tehreek, Sunni Ittehad Council, Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan and Majlis Wahdatul Muslimeen have are obviously questionable. They have no record of coming out with any impressive performance in any elections.
Another party of the coalition, the Jamaat-e-Islami, also has a limited public sway. However, a surprising omission from the deliberations where the alliance was formed was the PML-Q, which is also a bitter opponent of the ruling party.
If this grouping remains intact even after the exit of the PTI, it is in no position to make the PML-N run for life in the local polls. The PTI’s dissociation from the alliance has been good news for the ruling party, which is bracing up for the fight. Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and its federal and provincial legislators will play the main role in selection of candidates and formation of groups in their respective areas to contest the local polls. Tussles among its lawmakers to have ascendency in the district politics through controlling the local bodies is not being ruled out.
The new coalition has very little time to firm up the elaborate nitty-gritty leading to the final selection of joint candidates in the first phase of the October 31 local elections in 20 districts of Punjab and Sindh each. A lot of homework is required for the purpose while they have just three days during which they will have to do something worthwhile in the comprehensive electoral exercise. The submission of nomination papers began on Monday that will end on September 11. Their scrutiny will be held on September 12-17 whereas the last date for filing of appeals for and against acceptance of candidacy papers is September 22. The last date for deciding appeals by the tribunals is September 30. The last date for withdrawal of nomination papers is October 1 and the final list of contestants will be issued on October 2.