ECP must announce election schedule to dispel confusion: PPP.

LAHORE   -  In a notable shift from its initial stance where it firmly advocated for holding elections with­in 90 days of the dis­solution of assemblies, the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) now ap­pears to have adopted a more moderate posi­tion regarding the elec­tion date. 

The party’s central executive committee, which Friday conclud­ed its second session, is now calling for the timely announcement of the election sched­ule and date as per the constitutional require­ments, with a willing­ness to consider a slight extension if necessary.

“Our primary concern at this moment is the immediate announce­ment of the election schedule and date by the Election Commis­sion of Pakistan. The question of whether they should be held within the 90-day period or later will be addressed subsequently”, PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari Friday stated this while briefing reporters about the de­cisions made by the party’s CEC on issues relating to upcoming elections. 

It’s worth noting that Bil­awal Bhutto Zardari and his like-minded party men have been the ones advocating for elections to take place within the 90-day timeframe. In con­trast, the party supremo Asif Ali Zardari recently expressed sup­port for the Election Commis­sion’s position, suggesting that elections could be conducted af­ter the delimitation of constitu­encies, even if it extends beyond the constitutional deadline. 

For now, it appears that the party’s central executive com­mittee has aligned with Asif Ali Zardari’s perspective.

Later, replying to different questions, Chairman Bilaw­al stated that it would be im­practical to reiterate all the res­ervations expressed by PPP representatives from across Pa­kistan regarding the fairness of the political landscape. He said these concerns were present­ed to President Zardari for res­olution. Bilawal emphasised that every opinion had a con­text, and the party had not yet reached a final decision regard­ing its election strategy. “There­fore, their demand for the elec­tion date and schedule was aimed at formulating a strategy once these details are available”, he maintained. 

Bilawal emphasised the PPP’s nationwide focus and equal im­portance given to each prov­ince, underscoring that no one questioned other political lead­ers like Nawaz Sharif about their lack of presence in Sindh, Balochistan, or Khyber Pakh­tunkhwa. He also recounted the party’s history in Punjab and how it was removed from pow­er through conspiracies in 2013 and 2018, involving various in­dividuals and entities.

“The conspiracy was first hatched in 2013 by General Pa­sha, Chief Justice Chaudhry If­tikhar and a political party. Then in 2018, General Faiz Ha­meed and Saqib Nisar conspired to keep the PPP out of Punjab and plonk a certain political party. One political party suf­fered during its government be­cause PPP was kept out of Pun­jab”, he said. In response to a question about Friday’s verdict about the NAB laws’ amend­ments by the Supreme Court, the PPP leader said that Justice Bandial is the last judge who was restored through a notifica­tion. Now, the history will give its verdict whether there was any benefit to the country of the movement of judiciary.

Answering a question about political dialogue with the PTI, Bilawal said, “Before 9 May we were trying to have a dialogue with every political force for the elections but the PTI decided to attack the Jinnah House, GHQ and other army installations. We can have a dialogue with those not involved in the attacks of 9 May. Our doors are open for ne­gotiations with non-militant en­tities.” Bilawal Bhutto Zardari said that the CEC discussed the constitutional stand and then the stance of the Election Com­mission of Pakistan on elections. “We were all of the opinion that to allay any confusion, the ECP should announce the schedule of the elections. We think that once the election schedule is an­nounced, all the political par­ties will be in election mode and come out with their manifes­toes. The PPP will also present its manifesto to the people of Pa­kistan”, he maintained. 

He said the PPP had always tried to strengthen the parlia­ment and parliamentary insti­tutions so that we can all bene­fit from its fruits. 

Regarding the constitution­al stance and the Election Com­mission of Pakistan’s stance on elections, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari expressed the consen­sus within the CEC that the ECP should announce the election schedule to dispel any confu­sion. He expected that once the schedule is out, all political par­ties would enter election mode, including the PPP, which would present its manifesto to the public. He reaffirmed the par­ty’s commitment to strengthen­ing parliamentary institutions.

Chairman PPP stressed his keen interest in Kashmir and Gilgit Baltistan and his com­mitment to providing opportu­nities to the youth and engag­ing them in both politics and the economy.