Not sure of polls in January: Alvi

ISLAMABAD: President Dr Arif Alvi has said he does not believe that general election will take place in January next year but, at the same time, he called for transparent election when they are conducted. 

In an interview with Hamid Mir in Geo News programme Capital Talk, Alvi said: “I don’t believe the elections [will take place in the last week of January]. I think that the supreme judiciary has taken notice of it and it will issue an apt order.”

Regarding the election date, the president said he had written a letter for elections in Punjab and KP, but no action was taken on it. He said the Election Commissioner was called for holding polls in Punjab and KP, but he did not come. “Then I called the law minister and he also did not come,” he regretted.

He said there were problems related to the census. “I had said elections should be held on or before Nov 6,” the president said.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced last month that it would hold polls in the last week of January 2024, but did not give an exact date, prompting fears of another delay.

Alvi stressed free and fair elections, saying that they are crucial for Pakistan’s development. “...everyone is also calling for a level playing field.”

Ahead of the sought-after elections, he said that there was a need for the nation to become one. “Spirit of forgiveness builds nations,” he added.

He said he would have been in jail now had he been a PTI minister, and not in the President House. It was crucial to unite the country at this difficult time, he said. Commenting on his party affiliation, Alvi said that Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan was his leader. “I’ve found the PTI chairman to be honest in [his] financial dealings [...] he is a patriotic Pakistani,” the president said while responding to a question regarding Khan’s sentence in the Toshakhana case. Taking a jibe at the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM) with regard to present economic turmoil, Alvi credited the coalition government for making Khan more popular.

Regarding the PMLN narrative, he said people had given Nawaz Sharif the narrative that the PMLN was looking for. Nawaz Sharif talked about taking political parties and institutions together at the Minar-e-Pakistan. The next day, in a survey, 70 per cent people said they support ending confrontation with the PTI chairman and taking all the political parties together.

Responding to a question about a reference filed against CJP Qazi Faez Isa during the former PTI government, the president said: “I had nothing to do with the [presidential] reference.” He said he merely forwarded the reference that he received from the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO).

“Then prime minister [Imran Khan] has already said that he [even] did not want to send the reference [in the first place].” Alvi also said: “My job is to forward the reference once I receive it.” “CJP Qazi Faez Isa is a respectable man [who] will ensure justice,” the president said while praising the top judge for forming the Supreme Court benches in a transparent manner. He said he would do justice. People have trust in courts, and the nation has hopes from the Chief Justice of Pakistan. He would fulfil the nation’s hopes, he added.

Alvi said when he was out of the country for performing Haj, an amendment to the Election Act was signed. Had he not gone for Haj, the amendment would not have been signed by him. He said the amendment to Clause 57-1 of the Election Act 2017 was against the Constitution.

President Arif Alvi said he had always been against vandalism; he condemned the events of May 9. He said the way forward should be opened. He said he would always appreciate Asif Zardari’s Pakistan Khappay slogan.

Reacting to the president’s interview, the former ruling party welcomed Alvi’s remarks, terming them a comprehensive overview of the current political and economic turmoil in the country.

“We welcome the president’s remarks on transparent elections in relation to the overwhelming significance of the public mandate,” a statement issued by the PTI said.

Free and fair elections are the key to the preservation and continuance of democracy in the country, it added.

The statement also reiterated the demand for a “level playing field” for all political stakeholders with regard to election campaigns and media coverage.

The party also appreciated Dr Alvi’s remarks of finding Khan a “patriotic” and an “honest man”, terming it proof of vindication for the former prime minister, who was removed from power through a no-confidence motion in April last year.