(Islamabad) Supporters of former Prime Minister Imran Khan, currently imprisoned, obtained better results than expected in Pakistan’s elections on Friday, according to local television channels, but the slow counting process only adds to suspicions manipulation against them.
Imran Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) was not allowed to contest as a party in Thursday’s elections. But counts carried out by local television channels show that independent candidates – including dozens affiliated with the PTI – are leading in several constituencies for the legislative vote.
As of 9 a.m. (11 p.m. Eastern) — more than 15 hours after polls closed — the Election Commission of Pakistan, however, announced only 13 results, awarding five parliamentary seats to candidates linked to the PTI.
“Why are they taking so long?” », Indignant to AFP Ambreen Naz, 35, a businesswoman from Lahore (east). “Do you know what’s going to happen now? The stock market will open with strong fluctuations. The dollar will rise and the rupee will fall. All because they delayed the publication of the results, making them controversial.”
The Commission first cited “Internet problems” to explain the slowness of the process. But the Interior Ministry said in a statement that it resulted from “precautions taken to ensure absolute security” of the count.
Before the announcement of the first results, PTI chief organizer Omar Ayub Khan expressed confidence that his party would be “able to form the next federal government with a two-thirds majority,” in a video statement. to the media.
The Pakistan Muslim League (PML-N) of another former prime minister, Nawaz Sharif, is ahead of the PTI for television channels, but neck and neck, with 4 seats each, according to the Election Commission.
Nawaz Sharif, 74, who returned to Pakistan in October after four years of exile in London, would have the support of the army according to observers. A victory for his party would allow him to lead the country for the fourth time.
“Pre-election fraud”
The PML-N could, however, pay the price for its move to power, under the leadership of Shehbaz Sharif, Nawaz’s brother, after the ouster of Imran Khan from the post of prime minister by a motion of no confidence in April 2022.
The Pakistan People’s Party (PPP), which had participated in this same government, but had distanced itself from the PML-N – its historical rival – during the campaign, also seems to be doing better than expected, also with four seats according to the Electoral Commission.
Its leader, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, son of former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto, assassinated in 2007, spoke of “very encouraging” results.
Some 128 million voters were called to the polls on Thursday to elect the 336 deputies of the federal parliament and renew the provincial assemblies.
The campaign was marked by accusations of “pre-election fraud”, with the sidelining of the popular Imran Khan, 71, sentenced to three long prison terms, and repression against his party.
The authorities’ shutdown of mobile telephone and internet services for election day further reinforced doubts about the fairness of the elections.
“An effort is underway to falsify the results,” Raoof Hasan, PTI information officer, accused overnight.
Anti-establishment stance
70% of Pakistanis “do not have confidence in the integrity of the elections”, the Gallup Institute had already pointed out this week. This reflects a democratic setback for a country that was ruled for decades by the military, but has been under civilian rule since 2008.
“Fears of falsification of results and fraud are widespread and rightly so,” observed on the social network X Michael Kugelman, director of the South Asia Institute at the Wilson Center in Washington.
Imran Khan hoped to benefit, as during his election in 2018, from the mobilization of youth, thirsty for change after decades of domination by great family dynasties, deemed corrupt.
The former cricket star’s anti-establishment posture explains why his popularity has remained intact, despite a stint in power marked by the deterioration of the economic situation.
He directly challenged the army, although suspected of having supported him in 2018, accusing it of having orchestrated his fall in 2022 and attributing his legal troubles to it.
The vote was marred on Wednesday by the deaths of 28 people in two bomb attacks claimed by the Islamic State (IS) group in the province of Baluchistan (southwest).
The army said 51 attacks took place on Thursday, killing 12 people, including 10 members of the security forces.