LAHORE (NNI): Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo, President Punjab PPP, has said that the reservations raised by the PPP leadership regarding the dubious role of the Returning Officers on 2013 elections have been confirmed by the Election Commission Report published/broadcast by the media on Tuesday.
He said that in the report the Elections Commission had listed multiple factors those were responsible for the “electoral mess created by the Returning Officers”. He further said that the system for the tabulations of election results was out of order, ballots papers were not received on time, staff was not trained for the use of magnetic ink and above all the Returning Officers changed the staff at the nick time.
He observed that the ECP report had damaged the credibility of the whole electoral process of 2013 elections adding that the PML (N) would lose its legal and moral authority of having mandate of the people representing the voice of the people.
Mian Manzoor Ahmed Wattoo observed that the legitimacy of the government was in jeopardy as a consequence that could only be addressed by seeking the fresh mandate from the electorates.
He said that the Chairman Bilawal Bhutto would also unfold the extent of rigging of 2013 elections from Karachi to Khyber on October 18, 2014, when he would address the Party meeting at Karsaz, Karachi, the day when terrorists tried to assassinate Shaheed Benazir Bhutto when she was leading the mammoth procession there after arrival in Karachi from Dubai.
He recalled that after few days of 2013 elections, Co- Chairman Asif Ali Zardari in his meeting in Karachi with TV anchorpersons said, ‘ROs are responsible for the electoral debacle inflicted on the PPP adding how it is possible that the support of the Party evaporated with the start of the boarders of South Punjab up to Attock and returned with the commencement of KPK frontiers.’
He said that the PPP leadership decided to accept the results only for the sake of the continuity of democracy in the country because the party leaders and its workers had rendered ultimate sacrifices for the cause of constitution and democracy.
But, now after the Election Commission’s report made public, the party would reconsider its position as the stand of the party on May elections would become exceedingly difficult to defend in the future.
