MARDAN: The failure of the local leadership to form district government in Mardan has disappointed the councillors of PTI, according to insiders.

The PTI councillors told this scribe on condition of anonymity that the party failed to form government in the district owing to flawed strategy of their leadership. They said that PTI could form district government in Mardan easily by joining hands with other political parties.

They said that PTI got 46 out of the total 112 seats in the district council, followed by ANP with 34 seats, JUI-F with 14 seats, PPP with eight seats, JI with four seats and PML-N with three seats while three seats were won by independent candidates. 

“We could easily get majority through forming alliance with other political parties but our party leaders lost the opportunity as they took it easy and did not take interest in finalising affairs with other political parties,” said the PTI councillors.

Usually, they said, it was easy for the ruling party to form district governments but the poor strategy of the inexperienced PTI leadership caused failure of the party to form government in the district.

The PTI councillors alleged that their leadership did not follow merit in selecting candidate for the slot of district mazim. It caused frustration among PTI district councillors and other activists, they added.

They said seven out of 46 PTI councillors had submitted applications to contest elections for the district nazim slot on the party ticket. They said that three of the applicants including Shahid Bacha, Abdus Sattar and Umar Farooq Kakakhel were interviewed by PTI chairman Imran Khan in Islamabad after scrutiny.

They said that Shahid Bacha and Abdus Sattar were elected in the elections while Umar Farooq Kakakhel was elected on the party reserved seat in the district council.

They said that Mr Kakakhel selected as party candidate for the district nazim slot as he was eye-blued person of Provincial Education Minister Mohammad Atif Khan.

The PTI councillors said that Mr Kakakhel was elected on party reserved seat as he had lost election twice. The party leadership should select a candidate for district nazim slot among the councillors, who had won elections through general polls, they added.

They said that majority of party councillors and workers were not happy with the leadership decision to select Mr Kakakhel as candidate for the slot of district nazim.

However, PTI district general secretary MPA Iftikhar Mashwani, when contacted, said that the party leadership had taken all decisions on merit and with mutual consultations.

Published in Dawn, September 3rd, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play