F.P. Report
ISLAMABAD: Former President Asif Ali Zardari has expressed grave concern over the missing 13 million women voters from the voters’ list and called upon the government and all relevant state institutions to address the issue in right earnest for the credibility of the 2018 polls.
The former President said this at a briefing by the Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) in Zardari House Islamabad on voters’ registration and other election related issues in the country.
The four member FAFEN team which gave the briefing comprised of Shahid Fayyaz, Mudassir Rizvi, Yasir Javed and Javed Minwa. The PPP leaders who attended the briefing included Nayyer Hussain Bokhari Secretary General PPP, Farhatullah Babar Secretary GFeneeral PPPP, Chaudhry Manzoor Secretary Information PPP and Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar Information Secretary PPP.
The meeting was informed that the Election Commission of Pakistan had also stated recently that over 13 million women were not in the voters’ lists and not eligible to vote in the elections..
Commenting on the FAFEN report, he said that it is unacceptable that 10.2 women voters are not registered nation wide while a staggering 30 percent voter from Balochistan is also not registered. Zardari said that the voters registration issue was important for empowering women by enabling them to participate in the political decision making processes.
He said that the Sindh Chief Minister Murad Ali Shah will also raise the election and delimitation related issues at the meeting of the Council of Common Interests on Monday and present its point of view forcefully.
The former President also demanded to know the figures of above 18 years old in the country both males and females to make a fair assessment as to how many citizens were still not registered voters. The issue of under registration must also be addressed speedily, the former President demanded.
He also called upon Party office bearers to keep watch on the progress made in this regard and to keep him posted regularly.
The former President made it clear that PPP will not allow any rigging in the next General Elections and that no Iftekhar Chaudhary or Kayani Forumla will be valid this time like the past when our hands were tied in 2013 General Elections.
“I was not allowed outside Presidential Palace, Bilawal himself was studying and Yousaf Raza Gillani’s son was abducted just days before the election. Our entire party leadership was prevented from election campaign through terrorism,” Zardari elaborated. “However, times have changed, we all will be present in the political battlefield specially I, Chairman Bilawal Bhutto and Asifa Bhutto will personally head the campaign,” he added.
The former President further stated that Nawaz Sharif has always stolen the mandate through election rigging since its nearly impossible to attain two third majority each time.
