Electoral politics
June 28, 2008 BY and large the results of the by-elections confirm the February 18 electoral outcome. The two major coalition partners, the PML(N) and the PPP, carried the day while the PML(Q) was trounced. The voter turnout was quite low and there were incidents of violence both of which reinforce the typical traits of our body politic. However the feature that stands out prominent is the performance of the PML(N) which stood head and shoulders above over others especially its coalition partner PPP. Broadly speaking, its achievement is that it succeeded in hanging on to the seats that had been vacated by its candidates, unlike the PPP, which lost two seats of the Punjab Assembly, in Khanewal and Muzaffargarh. This has its symbolical import as well. Since southern Punjab was considered to be a PPP stronghold, the failure of the party to retain those seats appears to be a telling blow to the party. This could also be seen in the context of the Punjab Governor earlier saying that he would turn the provincial capital into a PPP fortress. By contrast, the show put up by the PML(N), which won six provincial and three NA seats, must be reassuring to that party. Maybe the PPP needs to be girding up its loins for the present results in a way reveal its decreasing popularity. The lukewarm attitude of its leaders towards the most burning issues, like the failure to resolve the judicial crisis, could further become a source of its downfall. But seen in the backdrop of the ongoing campaign against the President, the polls might further strengthen the coalition's quest for presidential impeachment.
On the other side of the spectrum, the incidents of violence that occurred are a sad reflection on the state of politics in our country. It would be folly to dub them part of the democratic process. Polling in a few constituencies was suspended due to rival groups clashing among themselves. It is sad to learn that 27 people were injured. Moreover, there is a crying need to review the electoral politics in the country. According to Free and Fair Election Network, the very exercise of by-polls is pointless as it results in waste of public funds. Why should a candidate win a seat and later vacate it for no reason at all? It certainly has a point when it asks the government to bar candidates from contesting elections from more than one constituency. Apart from that, the NGOs' concerns on making the polling process more transparent also need to be taken up by the government. Hopefully, the establishment of an independent election commission could be the best bet for establishing a sound political culture.