Ruling out early elections in Pakistan, former president and Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) co-chairman Asif Ali Zardari said that the multi-party alliance of Pakistan Democratic Movement will table no-confidence motions in Punjab and Khyber Pakhtunkhwa assemblies.
The statement comes days after Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) Chairman Imran Khan announced that his party has decided not to remain part of the current political system and will instead resign from all the assemblies. Imran’s PTI is in power in Punjab, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan-occupied Kashmir and Gilgit-Baltistan. However, the PTI has yet to announce a date for the dissolution of assemblies in Punjab and KP.
Addressing the party’s power show in Rehmanabad, Khan said, “We will not be part of this system. We have decided to quit all the assemblies and get out of this corrupt system.”
In an interview with journalist Asma Shirazi on Aaj TV programme ‘Faisla Aap Ka’, Zardari ruled out snap polls saying that it won’t “suit us or democracy” and claimed to have ‘enough numbers’ in both legislatures, the Dawn reported.
“It’s too immature and too soon to say anything about the elections. I don’t think there is a possibility of the establishment forcing early elections,” he said.
However, at the same time, he asserted that the coalition parties would contest the polls if the PTI succeeded in dissolving the provincial assemblies. “I will see how many MPAs Imran is able to get.”
In response to a question about the tabling of no-confidence motions, Zardari said: “God willing.”
He went on to say that the motions would be submitted “everywhere”.
The former president asserted that he had enough numbers in Punjab to overthrow the government of Chief Minister Chaudhry Pervaiz Elahi, the Dawn reported.
He admitted that cracks between CM Elahi and them had widened, ruling out any possibility of contacting the PML-Q leader again.
“Gave them (PML-Q) 17 ministries and made him (Elahi) deputy prime minister but this time they opted out themselves,” he reasoned, adding that they had ‘better choices’ now.
Imran has claimed that his party did not come to Rawalpindi for elections or politics.
Rather, he said it was the need of the country to have fresh elections.
Imran said he did not care about elections since they would be held in nine months’ time and his party would win them.
Imran has said that the country’s history will attest that he kept on fighting till the last ball for Pakistan.”I also want to say that those who saw a massive rise in their assets and trampled the nation’s rights … history is also looking towards him and writing down what he did with the country,” the Dawn reported.
