'Open-balloting only way to get rid of horse-trading', says Shibli

ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Senator Shibli Faraz Thursday said that Pakistan Tehreek e Insaf under the honest leadership of Prime Minister Imran Khan firmly believed that open balloting was the only way to eliminate horse-trading in the Senate elections.

Talking to a private news channel, he said the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) had a major role to play in maintaining the sanctity of the ballot, adding, "PTI's struggle was and is for the transparency of the voting process."

He expressed serious concern over the victory of Yousaf Raza Gilani in the center, saying that Prime Minister Imran Khan had already conveyed his concerns in this regard and that PTI also had a copy of the leaked video of Gilani’s son.

The minister stressed that if the country was to enjoy the real fruits of democracy, "we have to make things transparent, we have to discourage those who contest elections on the strength of money."

"People all over the country knew that there was sale and purchase in the Senate elections, and the PTI was the only party, which expelled its own MPAs from the party in 2018 elections, who sold their votes”, he mentioned.

Shibli said opposition’s outcry on the step to ensure transparency in the Senate elections was beyond comprehension but PTI government would continue its efforts to eliminate the menace of corruption from the country.