Karachi Mayor Murtaza Wahab elected as UC-13 chairman

ISLAMABAD: Mayor of Karachi Murtaza Wahab has been elected as the chairman of union council (UC-13) during the local government by-elections held on Sunday.

At least nine vacant seats in Karachi were up for grab for which 54 candidates, including the mayor and deputy mayor of Karachi, were in the run.

Elections were held for the slots of chairman, vice-chairman and ward members in Karachi’s five districts during the local government by-elections.

Polling took place from 8 am to 5 pm without interruption, and the official results are now awaited following the vote count.

According to un-official results of UC-13, Murtaza Wahab of the Pakistan People’s Party secured victory with 3,976 votes, while the Jamaat-e-Islami candidate, Noor-ul-Islam, received 1,566 votes.

Deputy Mayor Salman Murad also achieved success in UC 7, Gadap Town by securing 4,717 votes, while Jamaat-e-Islami’s Ayub Khaskheli received 951 votes. Abdul Hafeez Jokhio from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf received 175 votes.

In UC 3, Maripur Town, based on the unofficial and non-final results, the Pakistan Peoples Party’s Saifullah Noor won the chairman slot with 5,466 votes. Mohammad Hussain from Jamaat-e-Islami received 788 votes, and Mohammad Shahid Iqbal from the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz secured 606 votes.

The returning officer for Kemari Town reported a voter turnout of 29%, with 7,485 votes cast out of a registered 25,512.

Mayor Karachi Murtaza Wahab expressed his optimism that “today’s victory is just a trailer, and the real success will be in the general election.”

He encouraged his supporters to maintain their enthusiasm until Bilawal Bhutto becomes the prime minister.

In Nazimabad Town Ward-3, Jamaat-e-Islami’s candidate, Talha Ahmed Sadiqi, has secured victory with a total of 364 votes, while Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf’s candidate secured the second position with a tally of 126 votes.

In another constituency, UC-2, Ward-3, Millar Town, the independent candidate Muhammad Amir emerged victorious, while the Pakistan People’s Party candidate secured the second position, and the PTI candidate remained in third place, according to unofficial results.

These non-official results provide an initial glimpse into the performance of various candidates in the local government by-elections, with the final results expected to be confirmed in due course.