Bilawal Bhutto demands elections ‘according to constitution’

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Friday demanded general elections “as soon as possible” and within the constitutional limit of 90 days.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced that it will not be able to hold elections this year. The 90-day deadline for holding elections after the dissolution of the National Assembly (NA) ends on November 9, but the ECP says that it needs more time to complete the delimitation of constituencies, which is the process of redrawing the boundaries of electoral districts.

Some political parties have criticised the ECP’s decision and argued that the commission was deliberately delaying the elections to benefit the ruling party. The ECP denied these allegations, saying it was simply following the law.

During a press talk in Karachi today, Bilawal said the country’s people are facing three major challenges: inflation, unemployment, and poverty.

He said his party did not have any political enemies or opponents. Instead, the party is focused on fighting against these challenges. Bilawal said that the PPP has always helped the people of Pakistan and aided the impoverished.

Bilawal’s comments come at a time when Pakistan is facing several economic problems. The country’s inflation rate is at a record high, and unemployment is also rising. Poverty is widespread, and many people are struggling to make ends meet.

“Through its performance, the PPP has always proven that it does people-friendly politics and governance. And that is why the PPP still says that elections should be held as soon as possible, according to the Constitution and within 90 days so that we can win the polls and serve the people of the country and take them out of these difficult economic times.”

During his media talk, the PPP chairman was also asked about the recent statement by Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam-Fazl (JUI-F) emir Maulana Fazlur Rehman, who headed the Pakistan Democratic Movement (PDM), wherein he claimed that general elections would have been held by now if the PPP had not gone back on its words.

Talking to journalists in Lahore, the JUI-F chief had said that all component parties of the PDM had agreed to hold elections early last year but the PPP went back on its promise and then all parties decided to bring the no-confidence motion against the then-prime minister Imran Khan.

In his response, Bilawal said that the maulana was a senior politician, adding that he did not wish to go into much detail about the statement made by the PDM chief.

“But I will tell you this: PPP was ready for elections before, was ready for elections on May 14 and was ready for elections in 60 days and is ready for elections in 90 days according to the Constitution,” he said.

He reiterated that the PPP believed that elections should occur within 90 days, adding that the rest thought that they should occur after the delimitation exercise was concluded.

He said that the PPP engaged with the ECP on this issue, following which the electoral watchdog brought the dates for delimitation forward. At the same time, however, Bilawal urged the ECP to announce the dates and the schedule for elections.