- Saifullah Niazi, Ch Sarwar, Ali Asghar conspicuous by absence from CEC moot
- A PTI leader reveals some senior party leaders boycott ‘illegal CEC meeting’
The central executive committee of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) Saturday approved a plan to hold intra-party elections on June 11.
Around 300 members of the party met here with PTI Chairman Imran Khan in the chair. Though a majority of the party leaders attended the meeting, some senior leaders, including Saifullah Khan Niazi, Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar and some others, were conspicuous by their absence.
The party’s top decision-making body gave approval to the plan to hold intra-party elections, which were due to be held in the year 2016. It is interesting to note the upcoming general elections are scheduled to be held next year in 2018.
It seems that the PTI’s senior leaders have learnt nothing from history as the party stood divided after 2012 polls, too, as various factions had moved party’s election commission for massive rigging.
If the party goes for polls now—which is a compulsion under the direction of the election commission of Pakistan—the party may see some deep down divisions just like last year when the party chairman Imran had to postpone the polls after differences cropped up between two party stalwarts Jahangir Tareen and Shah Mahmood Qureshi.
Once known for holding most transparent intra-party polls among the political parties who are run under family dynasties, the PTI also lost charm due to allegations of rigging in the previous intra-party polls held in 2012. The party could not improve its party membership since, as the party’s former chief election commissioner (CEC) Justice (R) Wajihuddin Ahmed had ruled massive rigging in the party polls. Later, PTI chairman had appointed former bureaucrat Tasneem Noorani, who also left the process halfway due to alleged intervention in the process by some powerful party leaders.
A PTI leader told this scribe that the meeting had approved an interim constitution which would later be approved by the party’s elected CEC. He said after formal approval of the new CEC, the constitution would have legal cover.
He said the party also approved holding of party elections on June 11. A resolution was also passed by the CEC, urging all the state institutions to accord right to vote to millions of overseas Pakistanis, who have been contributing to the country by sending billions of dollars every year as remittances.
The meeting also decided that the party would work vigorously to form electoral reforms so as the next elections could be made transparent and no one could rig the polls. The party decided to launch a mass awareness drive across country. The meeting also approved a proposal to form a parliamentary board which would later award party tickets to the party’s top contenders so that they could have enough time to run the party campaign in their respective constituencies.
‘ILLEGAL CEC MEETING’
A party leader told Pakistan Today requesting anonymity that some senior party leaders had boycotted the “illegal CEC meeting”.
“Among those who boycotted the meeting included former additional secretary general of PTI Saifullah Khan Niazi, former Punjab governor Chaudhry Mohammad Sarwar, former ticker holder from Kohat Shahbaz Gul Shinwari, Abdul Qayyum Kundi and others,” the source said.
“Saifullah Niazi and Ch Sarwar are with our group. They will boycott future meetings, too,” the source added. The source said that Ali Asghar Khan also did not turn up following a show cause notice had been served on him. The source said that party’s other senior members were also in touch with the group.
When contacted, PTI Information Secretary Shafqat Mahmood rubbished the notion of fissures in the party, saying that Abdul Qayyum Kundi was not a member of the party’s CEC.
“Qayyum Kundi is not a member of CEC; others must have been busy,” he added.
Another PTI leader was of the view that decisions taken at the jalsa-type meeting of “unconstitutional CEC” lacks any legitimacy and can be challenged in a court of law.
“The committee is unconstitutional but that is not the only problem. Many other due process protocols are violated as well. The first notice should be issued by the secretary general but we don’t have anyone holding that title legitimately. The agenda for the meeting had to be conveyed prior to the meeting which did not take place. So all in all, this is not a legitimate meeting—both in its content and due process,” the party’s estranged leader said.
“What is the agenda for the meeting? I have stopped taking interest in party affairs. But to me, it seems the objective was to amend the party constitution and to get approval for an intra-party election process. In other words, those present will be endorsing their own elections,” the PTI leader said.
“We had requested all our supporters to reject this meeting and refuse to endorse these unconstitutional actions. Anyone endorsing or participating in this meeting has further damaged efforts to build PTI as a legitimate organisation that can defeat status quo,” the party leader added.
Pakistan Today tried to contact Saifullah Khan Niazi, Ali Asghar Khan and Chaudhry Sarwar but they did not respond.
