RAWALPINDI: Following a disastrous showing in the NA-122 by-election in Lahore, it appears that the PPP won’t be taking any chances in the local government elections, set to be held on Dec 3 in the garrison city.

According to PPP leaders, the party has joined hands with arch-rivals PTI, as well as the ruling PML-N, to increase its chances of success in the LG polls.

A senior PPP leader told Dawn that consultations with both parties had been completed. Under the agreement, the PPP would partner with PTI in 10 and with PML-N in seven union councils for LG polls in Rawalpindi City.

In addition, the party is also said to be in talks with the Jamaat-i-Islami and may be looking for seat adjustments with it in at least two UCs. There are a total of 46 UCs in Rawalpindi City.

Party counting on seat adjustments with PML-N, PTI and JI in nearly 20 UCs

When asked to explain the tactical rationale behind this move, PPP Rawalpindi City President Amir Fida Paracha told Dawn that the political dynamics of the garrison city were different from other areas. He said that no party could field candidates in all union councils and had to seek help from others.

“In the past, PPP and PML-N have cooperated with each other in several union councils, so these alliances are not so strange,” he said.

Explaining how the seat adjustment would work, Mr Paracha said that the PPP wanted its own identity to remain intact and would field its own panels in most UCs. In others, where PPP candidates will join other parties’ panels, they would contest as independent candidates.

He said that this strategy was also employed in the 2001 and 2005 local government elections and had been approved by the senior leadership of the party.

Another PPP leader explained that all-PPP panels would be fielded in at least 20 union councils, which will have the traditional arrow as its electoral symbol.

He said that the PTI had asked PPP workers contesting from joint panels in two UCs to run under the cricket bat symbol, but the party had refused to do so, saying they would prefer that its candidates ran as independents who may come back into the party fold following the elections.

The leader said his party would announce its candidates after the scrutiny of nomination papers was completed.

“Due to the rejection of nomination papers of party workers such as Haji Gulzar Awan from UC-36 (Mohanpura) and Kaleem Khan from UC-40 (Sarafa Bazaar), tickets will be awarded after the nominations process is completed,” he said.

Meanwhile, PML-N Metropolitan President Sardar Naseem told Dawn that while the party had been allowed to make seat-to-seat adjustments with the PPP and other parties, it would not be possible to enter into a similar alliance with archrivals PTI.

“We would rather lose that particular UC than work with the PTI. PML-N has strong candidates and they will win the elections,” he said. He also claimed that several UC presidents from the PTI had joined PML-N in recent weeks, including Babar Khayal from UC-36 and Zubair Khan from UC-2, adding that more would join the ruling party in the coming days.

He said that though negotiations with the PPP had been completed, the party would announce tickets after Nov 7.

Mr Naseem said that the party had fielded its panels in two thirds of all UCs in Rawalpindi City.

PTI MPA Arif Abbasi also confirmed that they would be partnering with the PPP in a number of UCs, adding that it had sought help from the Jamaat and the PPP due to internal differences in certain areas.

Published in Dawn, October 13th, 2015

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