ANP needs introspection after no victory in local government polls

The results of the local government elections in Karachi have proved that the Awami National Party (ANP), which was once considered the representative political party of the Pakhtun populace in the city, is no longer a significant political force in the city as none of the candidates fielded by it in the polls could secure their seat.

To discuss its disappointing results and decide the future course, the ANP has called a meeting of all of its candidates on Sunday.

The bad performance of the party in the local government elections has also sparked a heated debate within the party and many of its workers have questioned the ability of the party’s Sindh leadership.

ANP Sindh Spoksperson Advocate Bahre Kamal conceded that the party could not manage to win a single seat in the second phase of the local government elections in Sindh held on January 15 in the Karachi and Hyderabad divisions. The ANP had fielded candidates only in a few union committees (UCs) of the total 246 UCs in the seven districts and 25 towns of Karachi.

In the rest of the UCs, the party had announced its support for even its rival parties such as the Jamaat-e-Islami (JI), Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F). In return for its support, these parties accommodated a few workers of the ANP in their panels, but they did not contest the elections on the electoral symbol of their party — lantern.

Even in Karachi’s District West where a large number of Pakhtuns are settled in localities such as Pathan Colony, Banaras, Zia Colony and Metroville, the ANP could field candidates only in three of the 33 UCs — UC 4, 6 and 7.

In the rest of the 30 UCs, the ANP announced its support for other parties including the MQM-P and JI, its traditional rivals in the city. However, after the MQM-P announced boycott of the local body elections, some of the ANP candidates accommodated in the MQM-P’s panels through social media appealed to the voters to vote for the JI.

In Karachi’s District East where there are several Pakhtun-dominated areas such as Purani Sabzi Mandi, Shanti Nagar, Lasbela, Ayub Goth, Pehlwan Goth and Sohrab Goth, the ANP did not contest the polls at all and its candidates withdrew in favour of the MQM-P, JI, JUI-F or the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP).

In District Central of the metropolis, only one candidate was fielded by the ANP in alliance with the PPP. Both the candidates lost the election.

The number of ANP’s contestants was said to be not more than five in District Malir, all of whom contested the polls on the symbol of other political parties. A majority of those lost the elections.

In District Keamari, the party fielded a complete panel only in UC 8, but it faced defeat. Another complete panel of the ANP in UC-10 of District South’s Saddar Town withdrew its candidacy in favour of the PPP before the polls.

Talking about the political decline of the ANP in Karachi, a number of disgruntled party workers and leaders told The News that the current provincial leadership of the party was not willing to conduct intra-party elections. They said that a significant number of workers who had demanded elections within the party were shown the door.

Consequently, seats of many local office-bearers have become vacant in the party and it has not been able to find workers willing to fill those seats. Shahi Syed has been ruling the party in Sindh for the last 21 years and he is not willing to hold intra-party elections, say disgruntled leaders and workers.

One of the estranged leaders said that due to the one-man show, a large number of the ANP workers have left the party to join other parties or have become apolitical.

Commenting on the party’s dismal performance in the polls, the ANP Sindh spokesperson said the provincial leadership of the party had authorised the district chapters to issue party tickets to candidates and also allowed the district leadership to form alliances with political parties as they deemed suitable.

Advocate Kamal, however, said the local leaders issued tickets to incompetent candidates and the party leadership now accepted that it was a mistake to authorise the district-level leaders to issue tickets.

He said the ANP would review its organisational structure and hold an open debate within the party so that its weaknesses could be overcome.