Treachery at the polls

One of the most common means voters use to materialize positive changes in their constituencies is by rejecting large, established parties and turning to independent candidates, often from their communities. Unfortunately, this strategy has failed to deliver the desired results in Pakistan. Many of the independent candidates tend to betray the trust placed in them by their constituents and instead choose to ally with the status-quo parties. In this manner, the status-quo parties are able to use the votes of people who have overwhelmingly rejected their rule to exercise power. This can only be described as a serious distortion of the democratic process. The Election Commission of Pakistan must introduce amendments to the electoral procedures that prevent independent candidates from joining other parties once they are in office.

Sajjad Hussain Cheehani

Agra