Daily Times

The shadow of elections can be felt in bustling city streets, as campaign posters and slogans adorn every corner and political debates dominate conversations. Therefore, Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja’s words of reassurance about the capacity to hold elections on time and as per schedule have added little to the overarching narrative.

While it was heartening to hear him say the security forces were fully capable of ensuring a safe and peaceful environment for political parties, candidates and voters, it would have been worthwhile for him to detail measures taken to add to the fairness of the exercise. Today, as Pakistan eyes yet another point of inflexion, the crippling absence of faith in the system and hope for a better tomorrow is hard to ignore. We are days away from general elections and the political commentary has been reduced to a hotchpotch of hunches.

This failure to provide a level playing field would not only haunt those who stood as guardians of the exercise but also whoever managed to come in as the face of the government.

How would any party manage to push decisions that not only resolve political crises but also ensure a way out of the economic abyss if it suffers from a glaring lack of legitimacy? Even before the votes have been cast, analyst upon analyst is busy painting the exercise as the crown winner of the most tainted elections. It is absolutely crucial for the election machinery to deliver results as they are received on February 8 because a single misstep on their part would only lead to a parliament besmirched with an aura of uncertainty. Weak governments can neither honour promises nor cough out the determination to bring about a lasting change.

Therefore, we at Daily Times can only pray for an end to the snatching of papers, and detaining of unfavourable and showering blue-eyed candidates with unfair support. *