Jamaat-e-Islam (JI) and Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf on Friday formally entered an electoral alliance ahead of local bodies election for "peace and civic development of the long bleeding metropolis" but warned of a joint protest if polls were rigged. Both parties city's heads announced to have made almost 85 percent seats adjustment across the metropolis for the coming local bodies polls. However both parties, according to the announcement, will be free to join any other coalition on adjustments of seats, which are still undecided between them.
Karachi JI chief, Haifz Naeem-ur-Rehman led his party's team that included former town nazim, Abdul Wahab and ex-parliamentarian, Muzzafar Ahmed Hashmi while head of PTI Karachi, Syed Ali Zaidi spearheaded his party with Imran Ismail and Firdos Shahmim at a news conference held at a local hotel, unveiling an electoral motto "two symbols: one mission".
They ruled out taking place of fair, free and transparent polls in the absence of army and rangers personnel deployment at the election booths, saying that under police supervision 'elections are robbed not held". Both were unanimous that Election Commission continued to fail in holding fair polls citing an example of rigging and violence Khairpur Sindh.
"Seat adjustment on 80-85 percent has been made," Hafiz Naeem said, adding that both parties had done spadework to evolve an electoral program for betterment of the citizens besides stepping a platform to leave no space for disputes between the PTI and JI. He underlined the want of basic civic infrastructure, mass transit system and shortage of potable water.
He said that the alliance should not be seen as opposition to any other party however aimed at rebuilding the city on modern lines. Pointing out at a water project, he said that the K-IV had to complete by 2010 but even could not start work to build in 2015, showing the apathy and unwillingness of those parties had been enthroned for the last seven years in Sindh.
"Election and democracy could solve problems but democracy has been hijacked and polls are rigged," the JI Karachi chief said, adding that the continuing public demands brought his party in alliance with the PTI to strength their fight for a better democratic system and dispensation of civic services to the citizens. He also urged the public to change their voting trend and should support those parties sincere to the city's uplift and betterment.
He vowed to rejuvenate a dead mass transit plan to help citizens' commuting easy and rebuild a new and alternative water supply system for the metropolis once elected with a majority. He said that the JI possessed a basic organisational structure and greater vote bank in the city. "We [JI-PTI] accumulated our resources to form the alliance," Hafiz Naeem said, adding that the bleeding city should see a better future.
Ali Zaidi talked about the alliance had taken years of discussion and consultation with the JI before coming into existence to go for local bodies polls jointly. He said that both parties had evolved a program for the city that would deal with long and short term problems and their resolutions. The alliance was formed on a major point that revolves around Karachi and its people, he said, adding that the city was in a grim situation for the last 35 years with no remedy to stop its bleeding. Those, he said, had been claiming the city's 'contractors' had failed to even present a better planning for its development.
Police stand destroyed and politicised, he said, adding that the city, which should have at least hospitals in each district, had just one to cope with the lot of patients with substandard medical facilities. He also slammed the government for its education policy destroying the entire learning system in the province.
"The bleeding city is serving the nation with 65 percent of the total revenues and if it gets better and peaceful one can image how much it could more contribute to the economy," he said, comparing Karachi with Lahore, saying that latter was far better in the context of development. "We want a powerful local government system" Ali Zaidi said, adding that after holding majority his party would reform the existing local bodies' law that vested all powers in the concerned ministry and not the elected councillors.