ISLAMABAD, Nov 25: Major opposition parties said the federal government was formed as a result of post-poll rigging and horse-trading.

Taking part in a roundtable discussion on “election results and prospects for democracy”, Makhdoom Shah Mehmud Qureshi, Begum Tehmina Daultana and Fareed Paracha accused the government of pre-polls and post-polls rigging and horse-trading for the formation of PML-Q led ‘minority’ government at the Centre.

The discussion was arranged by the Pakistan Institute of Legislative Development (Pildat).

Shah Mehmood said October 10 elections were not held under normal circumstances.

He said the authorities, in a bid to attain their desired results, ousted popular national leaders —- Benazir Bhutto and Nawaz Sharif —- from the election arena.

He said the state-controlled electronic media was misused to propagate the interests of the king’s party while a campaign was launched to malign democratic leaders.

He said certain ordinances were promulgated to make the results in favour of the establishment. “The PPP chairperson, Benazir Bhutto, was bared from taking part in the elections.” He said the authorities knew that if she led the PPP campaign, the party would sweep the election results.

Even, in her absence, the PPP got highest votes, but manipulation and horse-trading continued till the formation of the king’s party government. He said formation of the new government was by no way dawn of democracy. In fact, democracy became loser as the government was formed with buying of loyalties.

The PML-N leader, Tehmina Daultana, said for true democracy it was mandatory to strengthen the democratic institutions. “The faith of the people on the institutions should have been restored.”

Mrs Tehmina Daultana said that any amendment in the Constitution could be made only by an elected parliament. Opposing the formation of the national security council, she said there should not be any supra-parliament body. She said there was a need to introduce a real democracy.

She lamented that during the formation of the present government worst horse-trading was carried out. She deplored that by suspending floor crossing clauses of the Constitution, horse- trading was given a legal cover which would yield hazardous effects on the national politics.

The MMA leader and MNA from Lahore, Fareed Ahmed Piracha, said the success of MMA was a popular reaction of the masses against politics of legacy of the feudal lords and capitalists.

He said the poor and downtrodden masses were fed-up of these opportunists, who had been governing the country like their own estate for the last 54 years.

He said the divided mandate would strengthen the establishment. “It is up to the politicians to manifest how they overcome the latest situation emerged with a hung parliament and minority government.” He said in these circumstances the politicians have to be more mature and wise.

He said the MMA had its own agenda and the masses had voted the alliance to implement this agenda. He said most of the MNAs from MMA belonged to the middle and lower-middle class. This is the breach of the traditional political scene in the country.—PPI