KARACHI: Waseem Akhtar, a senior member of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and a former mayor of Karachi, stated on Friday that his party rejects the “bogus” local government (LG) elections. The local body elections for Karachi and Hyderabad divisions were held on Sunday, the 15th.
“The voter turnout in the majority of Karachi and Hyderabad was less than 5%, which is below the required percentage,” said Akhtar. He went on to say that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) “failed to produce 100% consolidated results of LG polls even at this voter ratio. The people of Hyderabad and Karachi rejected the LG votes.”
Akhtar, who once served as the mayor of Karachi, stated that in major parts of Hyderabad and Karachi, only five to seven percent of eligible voters cast ballots, which is below the required percentage. He also accused the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) of colluding to steal the mandate of the people of Karachi, a city that plays a major role as it contributes to the whole nation’s income. Akhtar demanded re-elections as these Sindh LG polls were “rigged,” and added that the Sindh government had stolen half of the elections via an unfair delimitation.
Other Parties
The MQM leader has also raised doubts about the fairness of the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) conduct of the Local body elections. Akhtar further urged Pakistan’s Chief Justice Ata Bandial to take notice of the injustice being meted out to the citizens of Karachi. He also warned that worse consequences would follow if the state institutions did nothing to address the irregularities. If state institutions didn’t step in, he threatened, the people of Hyderabad and Karachi would emerge to “snatch their rights.”
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