Karachi: Pakistan People’s Party is misusing state machinery in favour of its candidate ahead of a by-poll in PS-114, alleged MuttahidaQaumi Movement-Pakistan Chief Farooq Sattar on Wednesday. He was addressing a press conference at Mehmoodabad#1 as part of the ongoing election campaign for his party’s candidate Kamran Tessori. Sattar said the ruling PPP was using the police force to harass MQM-Pakistan workers and threatening them with dire consequences if they did not vote for PPP candidate SaeedGhani. He said that regardless of these ‘cheap tactics’ the MQM-Pakistan would emerge victorious in the by-poll scheduled for July 9. “The SHOs of Mehmoodabad and Baloch Colony stations are threatening locals with dire consequences if they do not work for the PPP’s candidate,” he said. Sattar said one of his party’s workers in UC-4 area in Gadap had also been issued threats by the police. Further, he said the Election Commission of Pakistan had yet to share details of returning officers and the polling staff with his party candidate. Sattar termed the ECP’s dismissal of his party’s appeal for change of location of 11 polling stations an outcome of ‘politics of collusion’, adding that the decision would cost nearly 30,000 votes to MQM-P. The ECP had reportedly dismissed the appeal saying that such reshuffling of polling stations was not possible at this stage in the election schedule. Speaking at the occasion, MQM-P candidate KamraniTessori said he feared that the presiding officers would arrive late at polling stations to delay polling, creating hindrances for MQM-P voters. “If such delays occur, the government will be responsible for violence in the city,” he said.
Published in Daily Times, July 6th , 2017.
