Zardari vs Achakzai: voting for presidential elections underway

ISLAMABAD: Voting for the election of the country’s 14th president is underway simultaneously in the National Assembly (NA), the Senate and all four provincial assemblies.

The polling started at 10:00 am will continue till 4:00 PM. 

Asif Ali Zardari, the co-chairman of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), and Mahmood Khan Achakzai, the chairman of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), are vying for the prestigious office. 

Sherry Rehman will act as polling agent for Asif Ali Zardari while Senator Sardar Shafique will be the polling agent for Achakzai. Islamabad High Court Chief Justice Aamer Farooq is acting as presding officer for the election. 

Of total 692 lawmakers who will cast their votes today, 96 are senators, 336 are members of the National Assembly (MNAs) while 260 are members of the four provincial assemblies.

According to the Second Schedule, the candidate receiving the highest number of votes would be declared the winner by the chief election commissioner (CEC) while the federal government will later notify the result.

KP ASSEMBLY

In Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, 118 members of the provincial assembly are exercising their voting rights. The Sunni Ittehad Council has 89 members, JUI-F nine, PML-N eight, PPP five, PTI-P two and ANP one. Four independent members are also part of the provincial House.

PUNJAB ASSEMBLY

In the Punjab Assembly, election commission member Nisar Durrani has been appointed as the presiding officer for the presidential election, for which 400 ballot papers have been printed.

SINDH ASSEMBLY

In Sindh Assembly, Sindh High Court Chief Justice Aqeel Abbasi is acting as the presiding officer during the polling process. There are 163 members in the provincial house of 168, with the PPP and MQM having a combined strength of 150. Asif Ali Zardari is expected to get 58 votes from the House, with 45.66 votes from the PPP lawmakers in the electoral college of the Sindh Assembly. 

BALOCHISTAN ASSEMBLY

In the Balochistan Assembly also, the PPP, PML-N, National Party, BAP and BNP have all decided to vote for Asif Zardari. Moreover, the Jamaat-e-Islami and Haq Do Tehreek have also announced their support for Zardari.

However, the BNP-Awami has decided to boycott the presidential election, while the stance of the Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam is unclear. 

Boycott

JUI-F chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman has decided against voting in the presidential election, while the Jamaat-e-Islami also decided to against participating in the process. 

A JI spokesperson said the party would not participate in the presidential election, maintaining that the polling in these assemblies is also fake. “Votes and results were both stolen in the elections. The PM and his cabinet are all fake,” Qaiser Sharif commented. 

HIGH SECURITY ALERT

A high-security alert has been declared in the red zone during the presidential election.

600 police personnel have been deployed in the area while access to the red zone has been restricted to authorized individuals with passes only, as per police sources.

Section 144 is already enforced in the area, permitting only VVIP squads’ entry.

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