Hold intra-party polls before running in any election: ECP

Supervisory body bars political parties from

upcoming by-polls until legal requirement met

The country’s top polls supervisory body announced on Wednesday that the political parties that failed to hold intra-party polls would be barred from participating in the upcoming by-elections until they meet the legal requirement.

The Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) is the only political party in Sindh that meets the requirement of conducting intra-party polls before the next general elections.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) directed all the registered political parties to conduct intra-party polls at central, provincial and local levels and immediately submit their annual party accounts to be eligible for being allotted election symbols and for contesting any upcoming polls.

The MQM-P submitted its annual party accounts and the names of its office-bearers elected through the intra-party elections to the ECP in October last year.

The party was registered in the name of Dr Farooq Sattar as its convener soon after he and some other leaders and workers distanced themselves from MQM founder Altaf Hussain in August 2016. Aminul Haq was named the party’s information in-charge.

The parties likely to be affected by the polling body’s decision include the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), the Awami National Party (ANP), the PML-Quaid (PML-Q) and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI).

Though the PTI had conducted intra-party polls before the previous general elections, they were marred by rigging, as per the claims of the party’s then tribunal chief, Justice (retd) Wajihuddin Ahmed.

The ECP document stated that the PML-N’s last intra-party elections were held on June 27, 2011 to choose office-bearers for a term of three years, while the ANP conducted its last intra-party polls on November 30, 2011 to elect office-bearers for a four-year term.

The document further states that the PML-Q’s intra-party elections were due at least a year before the previous general polls, but the party was still allowed to contest the elections in clear violation of the law.

According to sources, most of the political parties were more interested in participating in the next general elections than holding intra-party polls, and would complete all the formalities on paper to qualify for them.

Intra-party elections are also due in the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam’s (JUI) two factions led by Maulana Fazlur Rahman and Maulana Samiul Haq since November and December 2016, respectively. They are also due in the Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan.

The All Pakistan Muslim League (APML), led by former president General (retd) Pervez Musharraf, failed to hold intra-party elections that were due before March 31 last year.

Other political parties that are yet to conduct intra-party polls after their respective office-bearers’ terms expired include the National Party (NP) of federal minister Mir Hasil Bizenjo, the Pakistan Awami Tehreek (PAT) of Dr Tahirul Qadri, the Pakhtunkhwa Milli Awami Party of Mehmood Khan Achakzai and the PML-Zia group.

Statements of accounts

The APML also appears on the list of the political parties that have yet to submit their statements of accounts to the ECP, which is a legal requirement for being allotted an election symbol. Both factions of the JUI, Bizenjo’s NP and Qadri’s PAT also figure on the list.

The supervisory body said it had, time and again, called upon the political parties to submit their statements of party accounts to comply with Section 13 of the Political Parties Order 2002.

The ECP added that all the political parties that had not submitted their annual party account statements and had failed to conduct intra-party elections would be barred from contesting in any polls under the symbol allotted to them. “This decision is to take immediate effect. All returning officers for ensuing by-elections are directed to implement the decision of the commission in letter and spirit.”