Daily Times

There are over 150 independent and sovereign states which undergo the process of elections every four to five years depending on the political system in their country. Each country may not have a system as fair and transparent as it should be. Even the most advanced democracies have had stressed elections and the results were questioned and aggrieved parties went to the court to get the decisions. Therefore, it is understandable that there will be some issues depending upon the political system and culture of the particular state when it comes to electing the next government.

In Pakistan too, the General and Provincial Assembly elections have been happening regularly, barring a few interruptions. However, on each occasion, the election results were either compromised or not accepted at all by the losing party/candidates. The question is why would this happen and when would it stop? I don’t think that there is an easy answer to these questions.

The best part is that elections have taken place and the people have voted as per their choice.

However, one can try to find the answers that may be close to being correct. In my opinion, the answer can be found in Pakistan’s political culture. It may sound a little harsh but Pakistan’s political culture truly reflects our degenerated societal values and nothing else.

In my earlier writeups on the General Elections 2024 in Pakistan, I cautioned about the risks of perceived irregularities in the outcome of the elections. Perhaps, I was right and the history is being repeated where neither the winner is happy nor is the loser satisfied.

Historically, Pakistan’s election process was never accepted as fair, free, and transparent, unfortunately though. This process of manipulation starts the day the assemblies are dissolved and an interim government is announced. At first, a lot of manipulation takes place in the selection of the interim government even though the procedure is well articulated in the Constitution. If, somehow, the process gets completed and interim governments are in place, it invariably starts to support a particular side to cast doubt on its neutrality. The claims and counterclaims continue and lay the seeds of dissatisfaction and discontent in the minds of the aggrieved party.

The next step is the announcement of the election schedule. The majority of the political parties do not have confidence in the transparency of the working of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP). From the announcement of the election schedule to the announcement of the result, the entire process and methodology are questioned by the aggrieved party. However, if the schedule is accepted, the process of filing the nominations is questioned at each stage. Several Tribunals have to be activated just to decide the potential candidates. Some potential candidates even need to go to the apex court to prove themselves an eligible person to be on the ballot paper.

Once all is set for D-Day, things generally go smoothly because there is little time to waste on the voting day. However, the moment voting time is over and the counting starts, another long-drawn battle gets underway between the winners and the losers. At first, interruptions and inordinate delays in the announcement of the results not only cast doubt but also created anxiety and suspicion in the counting as well as compilation processes of the results.

This sets the stage for the post-result denial and non-acceptance of the results thereby calling for protests alongside a long-drawn legal battle by the loser in different Tribunals and Higher Courts. My conclusions are based on the findings of all previous elections; therefore the 2024 elections were also not supposed to be fair, free, and transparent. The answer lies in our political culture. This is how we are and this is how we hold our elections and grab power, even if we have to fight for its legitimacy in the courts of law.

The General Elections 2024 were a little different from the previous elections on several accounts. First, the interim government had a longer tenure than usual due to certain unavoidable circumstances. Second, there were too many legal battles fought in each court including the apex court as late as 96 hours before the voting day. Third, the turnout was massive and surprised many. Fourth, the use of social media proved to be a game-changer for some candidates, Fifth, the people seemed to immediately reject the result and look charged to challenge the authorities more than ever before.

The abovementioned observations are making the 2024 elections different from the previous one. In my opinion, the results of these elections should be handled with extreme care because the people might come out in large numbers to protect their votes which may lead to law and order situations in certain places where people are more vibrant, more aware, and relatively more politically charged.

The best part is that elections have taken place and the people have voted as per their choice. Let the elected representative reach the Parliament House, and elect their leadership to ensure that political instability does not get prolonged and the country is put on the path of peace, progress, and development as soon as possible, In Sha Allah.

The writer of this article has authored three international books: “Nuclear Deterrence and Conflict Management Between India and Pakistan” “South Asia Needs Hybrid Peace” and “Understanding Sun Tzu and the Art of Hybrid War.”