QUETTA: Abdul Rahim Ziaratwal, Central General Secretary of the Pashtunkhwa Milli Awami Party (PkMAP), has accused the Balochistan government of seeking to “escape defeat” by attempting to postpone the upcoming local body elections in Quetta.
In an exclusive talk, Ziaratwal asserted that the government, lacking a genuine public mandate, is trying to sabotage the democratic process through various pretexts. “The government is looking for a way to escape defeat by giving applications for the postponement,” he stated.
He dismissed the provincial government’s cited reasons—sometimes law and order, sometimes severe weather—as mere excuses. Ziaratwal claimed the real motivation is that the “government produced by Form 47 knows that the public has rejected them,” a reference to the controversial forms used to consolidate election results.
The PkMAP leader argued that while the citizens of Quetta are eager to solve basic problems by electing genuine representatives, the government is trying to deprive them of this democratic right by repeatedly creating obstacles. He welcomed the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) recent rejection of the postponement request and expressed hope the polls would proceed on schedule.
Issuing a stern warning, Ziaratwal said that if the government does not cease its “cheap tactics,” the people will be forced to take to the streets to defend their rights. He concluded that the government’s “incompetence and bad intentions” are now exposed, and no further excuse should be allowed to delay the local elections.
Meanwhile Hazara Democratic Party (HDP) Chairman Abdul Khaliq Hazara launched a fierce attack on the provincial government and mainstream political parties during a series of campaign corner meetings for the upcoming local body elections in Quetta.
Addressing supporters in Zarghun Town, Hazara stated that the province’s deteriorated condition is a direct result of the 2024 general elections, where, he alleged, “fake people like mafia and parachutists” were given representation by sidelining the genuine representatives of the people. He claimed that those currently in the assemblies lack the “ability, courage and capacity” to resolve even minor public issues.
