Finally, the election date has dawned upon us. Yes, it is February 8 today and the election field has been decorated, which has to decide on the basis of the public mandate, who will be the head of the power, these are the testing stages regarding the future of the country and the people. The current general elections are of a very sensitive nature. Due to a galore of economic and other isses, this time, the electoral chaos that is characteristic of general elections was not seen in the streets. Although the number of candidates is one hundred and fifty percent more than the 2018 elections, the political parties put on a power show in their meetings and corner meetings.

All arrangements have been completed. 26 crore ballot papers and election materials have been delivered. The establishment of a control room and the deployment of Pakistan Army troops have started to monitor the law and order situation and election process.

For the first time, WhatsApp will be used to file complaints. Despite the lack of internet connectivity across the country, the Election Management System (EMS) will collect the results, which, though there are reservations from some quarters, has been approved by the Election Commission. More than 100 observers are monitoring these elections. There are a total of 17816 candidates for National and Provincial Assemblies. Special cameras have been installed at 1750 sensitive polling stations. Out of 92,500 polling stations, 12,500 polling stations have been declared normal. More than 10 lakh 7 thousand polling staff is performing duty.

According to the Election Commission, the preliminary results of all 859 constituencies will be released on February 9 by 2 pm. People should not pay attention to misleading propaganda on social media. Real ID card has been declared mandatory for voting. It is of utmost importance that the conduct of elections should be peaceful. In this regard, the people and political leaders also have to play their role. We need to promote democratic culture. Democracy and elections are inseparable, so in the world’s stable democracies, timely holding of elections is ensured even in the case of natural disasters and wars. However, repeated unconstitutional terminations of elected governments and long periods of authoritarian governments have not allowed the democratic culture to develop fully through a timely, transparent and credible election process in Pakistan. However, it is a matter of satisfaction that despite the successive incidents of terrorism in recent past, the preparations for the elections are proceeding rapidly. The Feb. 8, which is an election day has come. Earlier, with the completion of the process of scrutiny and approval of candidates' nomination papers, the classification of normal, highly sensitive and sensitive polling stations across the country has been completed. According to sources, the polling stations established across the country have been divided into A, B and C categories, under which 42 and a half thousand out of 92,500 polling stations in the country are normal, 32,508 sensitive and 17 and a half are ok but more than a thousand have been declared highly sensitive. The Election Commission has decided to monitor the highly sensitive polling stations across the country with cameras. In view of the concerns of unrest, CCTV cameras will be installed at more than 17,500 highly sensitive polling stations across the country, from which the polling stations will be monitored. Voting, counting and preparation of results will also be monitored. It would have been better if cameras were installed in all the polling stations to prevent suspicions, but probably due to lack of financial resources, this would not have been possible. Political leaders and workers must also show responsibility for elections free from lawlessness, riots, accusations and provocations. It would be good if the political parties voluntarily make a mutual agreement in this regard, which will surely help in reducing the threats of terrorism. It may be mentioned here that as many as 32 thousand candidates have submitted their nomination forms to the relevant rating officers for the election of 859 members of the National and Provincial Assemblies, including special seats for women and minorities. The Election Commission has announced the list of 175 political parties participating in the el The Commission has directed to give equal opportunities to all parties to participate in the election. The caretaker government has said that it is fully supporting the steps taken by the Election Commission for fair, transparent and fair elections but it also depends on the political parties themselves and their workers to what extent they make their election campaign peaceful and purposeful.

For this, it is necessary that the political leaders take the country's problems seriously in their speeches and present a positive plan instead of provocation. In fact, this is the urgent need of the hour. The nation is currently suffering from political uncertainty, economic instability, worst inflation and unemployment crisis. Meawhile, the World Bank in a recent report has expressed fears that the elections will not bring any major changes in the country and the new government will face most of the same problems that the previous governments faced so far.  What is needed is that the caretaker government and all political parties have to adopt an attitude of patience and tolerance in the interest of the country. Especially political parties have to include positive and constructive programs in their election agenda. Abusive language, slander and mockery should be avoided. At this critical juncture in the country's history, an election campaign based on patience and tolerance is in the interest of the nation. The choice of future leadership is the power of the people and it is best to accept whoever they choose in a democratic manner. It is impossible to deny the importance of electoral symbol in the process of general elections, especially polling. Political parties, voters and the Election Commission itself take help from it to make their affairs simple and transparent, from the printing of ballot papers to the counting of votes. Meanwhile, key political figures mainly from the PPP have advised the masses to come out and exercice thier right to vote. The 25th largest economy slipped to 47th place in just few years.Unemployment rose again to 6.3 percent. Only 400 MW has been added to the National Grid, that too by completing the previous government's projects. PTI took many foreign loans in the last four years as we had not taken in the last 71 years. The stock exchange continued to suffer. CPEC, which had the essence of changing the destiny of Pakistan, remained paralyzed. PTI's immature childish politics has thrown Pakistan into a deep swampy ditch. The coming govenment, after the Feb 8 elections, will have to face tough time as a lot of challenges are there and to overcome those challenges, a thorugh policy and a lot of hard work is needed to steer the country out of crisis. Meanwhile, Pakistan People's Party Vice President and Senator Sherry Rehman says that she is sure that  youth which 44 percent of the total voters will choose new leadership and new thinking. Sherry Rahman said in her statement that today 57 million young people between the ages of 18 and 35 will decide the fate of the country. She said that Bilawal Bhutto's 10-point election agenda consists of education, employment and future. The Vice President of People's Party said that Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will introduce 'Youth Card' for the youth, loans will be given for obtaining higher education. She further said that internship and employment opportunities will be created for the educated youth.

Published in The Daily National Courier, February, 08 2024

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