Bilawal ‘at odds’ with Zardari over poll transparency

Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, the Chairman of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), and Asif Ali Zardari, the Co-Chairperson, did not seem on the same page about the coming elections, as the latter expressed hope for a transparent election, while the former expressed concern about the manipulation of the results and the rigging of the polls.

PPP Chairman Bilawal hinted that the results of the poll could have been predetermined by the government just a day after Zardari said the country was moving towards transparent elections.

Despite the fact that the PPP has been calling for a level-playing field, Zardari had said in a recent statement that the country is moving toward transparent elections. He said that the caretakers, which are supposed to oversee the country’s affairs until an elected government takes over – were favoring the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N).

During a rally in Nowshera on Monday, Bilawal reiterated that if anyone intervenes in the election to influence the results, his party will not accept them, reiterating his call for transparent polls in the future.

In terms of the forthcoming set up, parties with a 2/3 majority say they have reached an agreement,” Bilawal said, without specifying which parties had reached a deal with each other.

In Bilawal’s opinion, if the results of the election are predetermined, then it is no use having an election, as he warned that many would protest and hold sit-ins against the newly elected government if anyone were to become the prime minister.

There is a long history of parties in Pakistan not accepting the results and claiming outside interference after the announcement of the results, but the winning candidates have always maintained that the polls were transparent after the announcement.

“We will only accept the choice of the people, not anyone else’s,” Bilawal asserted. He went on to note that the only way out of the quagmire in which the country finds itself is to conduct transparent elections.

It has been announced that the General Elections will take place on February 8, 2024, across the entire country, and the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz has also been holding meetings with political figures in order to strengthen its position ahead of the election.

According to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), which has been calling for a level-playing field across all political parties, the authorities have forbidden the party from conducting election campaigns as Imran Khan, its chairman, remains incarcerated while he pursues his political career.

PPP, however, has also stated recently that they will not allow PTI to participate in the elections as they believe that the credibility of the elections will be questioned as a result.