Event:

Pakistan's elections on 11^th May 2013 were widely covered by local as well as foreign media. So far no official data has been released regarding the percentage of votes cast, but it is believed that around 55 to 60 percent people voted in this election. Political parties and media ran an almost month long campaign to encourage people to vote. They created fear in the people that if they do not vote then the previous corrupt rulers will once again come in to power. The Election Commission conducted several press conferences and assured the nation that this time no one can steal their mandate because they have employed such a tremendous and transparent system, that there is no possibility of rigging any more. However, after the announcement of results, every party whether it has won seats in National assembly or provincial assembly, raised hue and cry regarding vote-rigging where they have lost seats, as reports emerged of more than 100% voter turn out in many areas! Practically there is not a single party in the country which is not accusing of severe vote rigging and demanding fresh elections for a number of seats. Almost every party is holding protest rallies, sit-ins and strikes. Serious complaints of rigging have been reported across the country, from Karachi to Lahore and onwards.

Comment:

The election drama in Pakistan has once again proved that real change is not possible through this corrupt democratic system. First of all, this system does not allow any genuine and independent political party based on Islam, like Hizb ut Tahrir, to take care of the issues of people. Even the people are not allowed to choose their representatives freely from amongst those political parties that are allowed to take part in election in this corrupt system. If the people are not free to vote in two largest cities of Pakistan, Karachi and Lahore, then one can imagine what would have been the situation on Election Day in small cities, town and villages.

If through free and fair elections real change was possible in this corrupt democratic system then in India, which is the 10^th largest economy of the world, with 1900 billion dollar GDP, 70 percent of the people would have not been living on less then 2 dollar per day income and almost the same percentage of people would have not been forced to go on rail tracks and road side to answer the call of nature, through lack of toilets in their homes. Immense concentration of wealth in the hands of a small elite confirms that democracy is not for majority, or even the minority, rather it is for a very thin slice of people who take turns in ruling and make laws to serve their self-interests.

And injustice through concentration of wealth is not faced in developing countries only, rather in developed democracies as well people have not been able to bring real change through free and fair elections. That is why we see people in America protesting against their system and holding placards declaring, "We are the 99 percent". This means that this democratic system, even after conducting dozens of free and fair elections in developed democracies, could not bring real change for the masses.

Real change is only possible by conducting political and intellectual struggle on the method of Prophethood against this Kufr democratic system in order to establish Khilafah "Caliphate". And the current electoral drama in Pakistan once again reaffirmed the need for the abolition of democracy and the return of the Khilafah "Caliphate".

Shahzad Shaikh

Deputy to the Official Spokesman of Hizb ut Tahrir in Pakistan