JI-PTI local govt coalition likely in Karachi, says Naeem

Karachi Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman has hinted that his party would form the local government in Karachi after entering into a coalition with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Addressing a press conference at the Idara Noor-e-Haq, the Karachi JI headquarters, on Saturday, he warned the ruling party in Sindh against resorting to ‘horse trading’ in the election of the Karachi mayor.

He said the JI would continue upholding democratic values. The PPP should not further disgrace itself by buying conscience of Karachi Metropolitan Corporation City Council members, he added.

Rehman said the PPP was sure of getting its candidate elected as the city mayor in spite of the fact that it was short of 24 votes to form the local government in the megacity.

He maintained that the PPP was celebrating what it claimed to be its victory, however, it was an open secret that the ruling party had employed unmatchable fascist tactics and state machinery to rig the polls and increase its numbers.

The PPP had failed to acquire a majority in the local government polls despite employing naked fascism and state oppression, Rehman alleged.

The JI leader showed a result from a polling station in Karachi showing 41 votes in favour of the PPP. The result form bore signatures of not only government officials and but also the PPP’s polling agent among others. However, he then showed the result form issued by the government, in which the number of votes cast in the favour of the PPP were increased from 41 to 419.

He said the PPP had the third position in the UC but it was declared having the first position in an ambush on the basic democracy.

Talking about the PPP’s victory celebrations, he asked PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari whether the PPP was celebrating after pushing Karachi and its people to the Stone Age. “Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, you are celebrating for failing Karachi and Karachiites,” he said.

The JI leader said the total number of seats required to establish the local government in Karachi were 184. He added that if the JI formed a coalition with the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf ((PTI)), their number would be 191, excluding six union committees whose matter was pending before judiciary.

He announced that talks between the JI and PTI had entered into an advanced stage and details in this regard would be shared with the media at an appropriate time. He maintained that the JI would form the local government in Karachi.

He remarked that the Election Commission of Pakistan was acting in a manner as if it had been held hostage by the PPP. Rehman also criticised the PPP for amending the local government law at a time when the polls had been held and the government was yet to be formed.

He said that unfortunately, the Rangers had played the role of only a spectator in Karachi when the PPP’s supporters were rigging the elections. The JI leader also condemned the Sindh government as well as the Pakistan Bureau of Statistics for slashing the population of Karachi into half in the census.

Talking about the situation of law and order across the country, he said the government was responsible to maintain law and order.

He said the government needed to abstain from revenge politics. The JI did not support disturbance and violence in the name of protests at any cost but at the same time it also opposed any attempt to resort to undemocratic and draconian measures against a political party or group.

He particularly condemned the government for arresting female political workers. Rehman was flanked by JI leaders Munim Zaffar, Raja Arif Sultan, Saifuddin Advocate, Abdul Wahab, Ishaq Khan, Abdul Razzaq, Zahid Askari and others.

A day earlier on Friday, Sindh Labour and Human Resources Minister Saeed Ghani claimed that with 155 members in the soon-to-be-formed City Council, the PPP was sure to get its nominee elected as the next mayor of Karachi.

Speaking at a press conference Friday, he said that at present PPP candidates had secured success in 104 union committees in Karachi He said the number of the PPP’s members would increase to 155 after the election against the reserved seats in the City Council.

Ghani said a political party was required to have a minimum of 184 members in the council for getting its nominee elected as the city’s mayor. He said that this requirement would come down to 183 if Firdous Shamim Naqvi of the PTI decided to vacate his seat in the council.

He said the 14 council members belonging to Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and four members of Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam would support the PPP’s candidate for the mayoral seat.

Ghani, who is also the Karachi PPP president, hoped that the council members of the Tehreek-e-Labbaik Pakistan would also support the PPP in the mayoral election.

He predicted that the chairmen of several UCs in Karachi would also support the PPP in the mayoral poll for the continuity of the development works in Karachi.

He told media persons that PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari would address a public meeting on II Chundrigar Road on Saturday (today). He said that Bilawal would attend the public meeting to express his gratitude to the supporters and activists of the Peoples Party for their hard work in securing victory in the recently held local government elections in Karachi.

Answering a question about the latest amendment to the provincial local government law allowing an unelected member to become a mayor, the minister told media persons that a similar provision was present in

the Local Government Law of 2001.

He also claimed that earlier all the concerned political parties had demanded amending the local government law for inserting such a provision. He, however, made it clear that an unelected member after becoming the mayor had to become an elected member of the council within six months of assuming the mayoral charge.