KARACHI, Dec 31: The Pakistan People’s Party will not accept extension in the date for the general elections scheduled to be held on Jan 8 on any pretext.
This was made clear by PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari on Monday amid reports that the government was considering putting off the elections, according to a message received here.
Mr Zardari said that while the PPP was going for the elections despite being in a state of shock to save the federation, the undemocratic forces had started hunting down PPP workers to create chaos to run away from elections. In that case, he said, the party would consult other political parties to firm up its future strategy. “The PPP will not let the regime run away from the polls,” he said.
According to sources, the possibility of the government resorting to delaying the elections was deliberated upon at a meeting of the PPP’s central executive committee that decided the party leadership issue and the matters concerning its participation in the election on the specified date.
According to a top-ranking PPP leader, there were some apprehensions at the CEC meeting about the party’s strategy in case the government decided to postpone the elections for some weeks but the issue was scuttled on the ground that when such an eventuality emerged, the party’s CEC would discuss the mater and also consult other political parties to decide about the future course.
Mr Zardari also condemned the arrests of thousands of PPP workers across the country and demanded their immediate release.
He asked the regime to track down the arsonists and looters instead of arresting innocent PPP workers who never indulged in such activities.
He also directed the district presidents of the party to forward the names of all party workers arrested and tortured by security agencies.
Meanwhile, Nisar Ahmed Khuhro, leader of the opposition in the outgoing Sindh Assembly, has said that the damage caused to some polling stations should not be made a pretext for the postponing of the elections. He argued that ballot papers had still not been sent to all districts. He said the EC should remain prepared for all such eventualities.
Meanwhile, in a signed letter released by the PPP media cell, Ms Sanam Bhutto has said that she endorses the decisions taken by the PPP on Dec 30 in accordance with the wishes of her elder sister, Benazir Bhutto. “I believe that the resolution of the leadership issue in accordance with Benazir’s will has not only saved the party from a crisis but will also strengthen it further,” she said.