“In social club for things to remain the same, everything must change” – Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa Here’s the problem: the winning party, the Election Commission too other institutions involved inwards final week’s national polls tell in that place is zero incorrect inwards the agency the results were announced, too that the outcome of the electoral practise is the volition of the people. They tell it’s fair play. Those affected yesteryear the unprecedented delay inwards poll results announcements too almost surreal developments inwards vote counting too tabulation, amid other things, cry brazen foul play. They allege that the umpire’s pollex too finger both were at move inwards ensuring the PTI’s victory (and their loss). So spell Imran Khan wants to brand authorities at the ticker too inwards Punjab, the broad coalition of parties (PML-N, MMA, ANP, PPP, PSP, MQM, too the rest) wants to expand their protestation too query the really foundation on which the PTI’s victory stands. Whom hit you lot believe? What hit you lot believe? This is a difficult one. It tin tear your encephalon apart. One security agency to teach a perspective on things is to tell yourself that the many strange things that receive got happened earlier too during these critical polls, too which together receive got produced this outcome, receive got been because of CPEC. Yes, CPEC – Crazy Process of Election-related Coincidences. You tin believe for the sake of staying sane that behind this CPEC lies unopen to inscrutable universal forcefulness which sequenced political, judicial too electoral events inwards such a agency that they all ended upward giving the PTI its magnificent mandate too every other political party a humbling defeat.
Reliance on CPEC every bit a tool of reflection too analysis is peculiarly helpful if you lot don’t similar to listen words similar ‘rigging’, ‘engineering,’ ‘fixing’, ‘buying’, ‘selling’ – words which nosotros heard endlessly for 5 years nigh 2013 elections, too are forthwith thence sick of them that nosotros exactly don’t desire to nurture them.
So your analysis tin unfold something similar the following. It was CPEC that caused the collapse of the Election Commission’s famed organization for transmission of results. It somehow stopped working exactly when it was needed the most – at the terminate of the polling time. It exactly happened that a basic organization similar this (for information transmission) which works fine inwards every nook too cranny of the world, processing hits inwards millions for tiny companies without fail, could non accept the charge of a few thou hits hither inwards Islamic Republic of Pakistan on the 25th of July.
From this crazy coincidence flowed every other crazy coincidence: delay inwards the results announcement, banishing of polling agents of the losing parties from polling stations during the counting of the votes, disappearance of the counted vote aggregate (Form 45) that has to last signed yesteryear each contestant’s polling agent, too the inability of most presiding officers to achieve the offices of the Returning Officers – located iv kilometres away – inwards unopen to cases, fifty-fifty inwards 48 hours.
It was CPEC that created results inwards which the maximum rejected vote, which inwards at to the lowest degree 35 cases could receive got altered the outcome, belonged to the losing candidates. It was CPEC that ensured that somehow voters had to hold off the longest inwards constituencies where a healthier vote cast would receive got potentially led to the victory of the N-League.
It was CPEC that produced this amazing statistic of Tehreek-e-Labbaik Islamic Republic of Pakistan causing the loss of xiv National Assembly seats to alone ane party: the PML-N. It was CPEC’s doing that every political party that could receive got potentially joined forces amongst the N-League to degree authorities at the ticker is wiped out – the MMA, the ANP too the MQM-P for instance. It was CPEC’s mistake that the original election commissioner, the secretarial assistant of the ECP too all the resources at their ascendancy had no clue nigh securing ballot boxes’ tape too that the security forces had to remain inwards custody of or stand upward at guard on the boxes during recounting fifty-fifty when their special duties had ended.
The impact of this Crazy Process of Election-related Coincidences was visible earlier the elections every bit well. From NAB getting grip of the likes of Eng Qamrul Islam contesting from Pindi on the northward ticket to the seven-year old illustration existence adjusted earlier the polls too resulting inwards the arrest too incarceration of unopen to other N-Leaguer from the same city, Hanif Abbasi. It was exactly a coincidence that somehow all media outlets constitute it convenient to offset talking nigh the PTI’s victory ii hours later on the election fourth dimension closed fifty-fifty though a mere iii per centum of results had been announced too total results could alone last obtained later on iii days.
CPEC also necessitated that all media outlets somehow agreed to blackout most tidings of vast too really nasty world protests inwards Punjab too Khyber Pakhtunkhwa over alleged rigging. It was exactly a coincidence that these outlets made sure, almost inwards unison, to mute or accept off press conferences of parties levelling serious allegations nigh the polling too itsresults.
It had to last CPEC, what else, that ensured that Nawaz Sharif too Maryam Nawaz never teach to present their faces – fifty-fifty inwards courtroom – to Earth xv days prior to the election too x days after. Thanks to CPEC, every courtroom illustration involving the Punjab authorities of the previous era became a media trial of politicians who were most song during their days every bit ministers.
CPEC created the Grand Democratic Alliance. It was CPEC that pricked the conscience of southward of Punjab landlords too religious families to switch sides at the eleventh hour; the nativity of the Balochistan Awami Party was also a random coincidence. So is the amazing fact of the book of stories nigh Asif Ali Zardari too his sister’s cases of money laundering too other alleged crimes corresponding to their political opinion on whether to bring together forces amongst the PTI’s opponents or rest quiet.
Of course, it is exactly a crazy coincidence that everything that Shaikh Rashid said (from the original judge visiting the sight of the infirmary that Rashid wanted to consummate inwards his constituency to the Sharif household unit of measurement landing specifically inwards Adiala Jail) too Javed Hashmi repeatedly predicted has come upward true!
You receive got to believe inwards CPEC too zero else to brand sense of the events that receive got taken house on this country’s electoral chessboard of late too those that receive got preceded them. Nobody is to last blamed. No ane did anything. Not fifty-fifty lifted a finger or made a call, or rolled out maps to create an elaborate conception to recast national politics. These things hit non move on similar this. Maybe elsewhere inwards the uncivilised world, but non hither inwards Pakistan. No way. Nobody has anything to hit amongst anything. All election-related things receive got happened because they exactly happened.
But let’s last clear on ane thing: exactly because large things receive got exactly happened on their ain does non hateful that they volition non receive got consequences. CPEC’s consequences are far too wide. The election results receive got triggered a moving ridge of anger too a deep feeling of existence wronged inwards a large department of a charged electorate that cuts across at to the lowest degree iv ethnic too linguistic boundaries – Baloch, Pakhtun, Mohajir too Punjabi. CPEC has activated religious groups amongst viciously sectarian or parochial worldviews too amongst matchless mightiness to agitate the street.
CPEC has broken downwardly political combat into ii unbridgeable halves too has planted seeds of terrifying distrust too enveloping hate amid the immature too the old voter alike. It has set a siege on the conception to create a stable political social club yesteryear putting a large query score on the legitimacy of the verdict of these critical elections.
These are long-term consequences that receive got already started to unfold. Only if this Crazy Process of Election-related Coincidences had non happened, Imran Khan’s victory would receive got been such a fantabulous affair for the province – neat, clean, undiluted too unquestioned. He could receive got really led the province from the front.
But forthwith he has to constantly await over his shoulder, encompass his sides and, what’s worse, constantly depend on CPEC to decease on him afloat. He is a homo belongings a tainted trophy fifty-fifty though without CPEC this trophy could good receive got been his, fair too square. But forthwith nosotros would never know that. All nosotros know is that the Crazy Process of Election-related Coincidences has created a majestic mess – of the assort that volition non teach sorted out easily. Wait too watch.
The author is erstwhile executive editor of The News too a senior journalist amongst Geo TV.
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