Pakistan Information & News

Anwar Ibrahim the opposition leader of Malaysia started his way towards parliament again after the absence of a decade. Anwar’s majority of 15,671 votes was bigger than that obtained by his wife Datuk Seri Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail in the March general election.

The third candidate, Hanafi Mamat, who contested on a Parti Keadilan Insan Malaysia (Akim) ticket, only managed to get 92 votes, losing his RM15,000 deposit in the process.

There were 447 spoilt votes.

With the win, Anwar takes back the seat he had held from 1982 to 1999. In 1998, after he was sacked from government and jailed, Dr Wan Azizah won the seat in the general election that followed. She was returned again on March 8 but resigned on July 31, to force a by-election so that Anwar could return to Parliament.

That Anwar was set to make his political comeback after a 10-year absence, of which six were spent behind bars, became apparent by the time polling stations closed at 5pm.

An estimated 40,000 Pakatan Rakyat supporters swarmed the Tuanku Bainun Teacher Training College grounds to celebrate the victory.

The crowd began to gather at the area from 4pm. Conspicuously missing were Barisan Nasional supporters.

When the crowd grew larger, the field set aside for BN supporters was opened to Pakatan Rakyat supporters.

The crowd cheered each time the returning officer announced Anwar had won in a particular polling station.

Shouts of “reformasi” and “Merdeka” filled the air with supporters waving their party flag.

Dubbed the “mother” of all by-elections, BN was the underdog from the start as Permatang Pauh has long been Anwar’s turf.

Nevertheless, the BN fought hard. It was a ferocious 10 days of campaigning as both sides traded insults and accusations. Some have even described it as the dirtiest by-election ever.

Anwar and his supporters had claimed that the government and mainstream media had mounted an “intensely negative campaign” against him

They also claimed that there was electoral fraud.

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Tags: anwar ibrahim, Asia, Election, malaysia

 Hollywood most famous actress Angelina Jolie to sign onto a film often makes it a guaranteed winner but can she do the same for presidential politics and the lush lipped actress who even during this election year receives about as much press as John McCain and Barack Obama is currently being courted by both candidates but the politically minded actress has yet to endorse either. In a statement given to the entertainment trade magazine variety the new mom says I have not decided on a candidate.

Jolie says she is looking at both Obamas and McCains international policies. I am waiting to see the commitments they will make on issues like international justice refugees and how to address the needs of children in crisis around the world explains the United Nations goodwill ambassador. In Feb after a trip to Iraq Jolie seemed to have sided with McCain when she wrote in a Washington Post editorial that her visit left me even more deeply convinced that we not only have a moral obligation to help displaced Iraqi families, but also a serious, long-term, national security interest in ending this crisis what we cannot afford, in my view is to squander the progress that has been made and if she did support McCain, it would be one of those rare occasions when she and her estranged father Jon Voight would see eye-to-eye of course Jolie might be swayed to endorse Obama who according to researchers at the New England Historic Genealogical Society is believe it or not her partner Brad Pitt’s ninth cousin. Obama did concede on the View I think he got the better-looking side of the gene pool. Until Jolie makes her official decision she will still remain focused on the 2 Vivienne and Knox that is.

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Tags: Actress, Angelina Jolie, Barack obama, Election, Entertainment, hollywood, John Mc Cain

 

Election Commission of Pakistan on Monday postponed fresh/bye-elections till August 18, this year, said a press release. The holding of fresh/bye-elections to vacant seats in the National Assembly as well as Provincial Assemblies of four Provinces, polling for which was scheduled to be held on June 18, 2008. “In view of the Report received from the Home Secretary, Government of NWFP regarding law and order situation prevailing in that province, the forthcoming budget sessions in the National/Provincial Assemblies and overall security environment, the Election Commission has deferred (the polls) for a period of two months,” said Kanwar Mohammad Dilshad, Secretary, Election Commission. He further said that the revised schedule will be issued in due course. He clarified that the candidates who have filed nomination papers with the Returning Officers concerned need not file their nomination papers afresh.

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Tags: Commission, Election, Pakistan

 

The European Union Election Observation Mission (EUEOM) Pakistan 2008 clearly stated Friday that no changes will be made to the final report on General Elections 2008 despite reservations by the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM). EUEOM Chief Observer Michael Gahler spoke to the press at the Karachi Press Club and mentioned the MQM’s grievances over some of their findings. The MQM has strong reservations over the sentence, “MQM has a reputation of strong control sometimes including the use of force, violence and intimidation.” This is a fact and there is nothing to withdraw, said Gahler, adding that they did acknowledge that the MQM was a well-organised party. EU Deputy Chief Observer Hannah Roberts and Consul-General of the Federal Republic of Germany in Karachi Hans-Joachim Kiderlen were also present. Gahler refuted the claim that the group had said the MQM forced voters at gunpoint. He cited severe reservations of the PPPP, PML-N and ANP over the electoral results of NA-241 and NA-250. The observer group also had observed severe irregularities in the elections in Karachi, observing that Pakistan was in dire need of election reforms, and the EU has been forwarded many recommendations. According to the report, the MQM secured a victory in 44 out of 170 polling stations in NA 241 with 57,381 votes. The average turnout in these 44 polling stations was 85.12% alone, while the overall constituency turnout was only 54.85%. Similarly, in NA 249 the winning candidate was from the MQM with a victory margin of 30,522 votes followed by a Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPPP) candidate. EU observers meet Dr Farooq Sattar: APP reported Friday that a two-member delegation of the European Union Observers visited the MQM head office at 90 on Thursday evening. They had a two-hour meeting with MQM Deputy Convenor Dr Farooq Sattar and members of the MQM Coordination and Diplomatic Committees. The delegation comprised Gahler and Roberts. The MQM was represented by MQM Coordination Committee member Shoaib Bukhari, MNA Hyder Abbas Rizvi, Khush Bakht Shujaat, Fauzia Ejaz, MQM Parliamentary Leader in the Sindh Assembly Syed Sardar Ahmed, Deputy Parliamentary Leader Faisal Sabzwari, Members of the Sindh Assembly Askari Taqvi, Raza Haroon, Nadia Gabol and City Naib Nazim Nasreen Jalil. Gahler clarified that certain newspapers have misreported their press conference and he has not leveled those allegations against the MQM either in the report or in the press conference. EU election observers meet ANP: The Awami National Party (ANP) Sindh chapter President, Shahi Syed, has demanded re-elections on some constituencies of the city in which he claims “the polling was rigged. He made this demand in a meeting between the ANP provincial leadership and the European Union (EU) election observer delegation, headed by Michael Gahler. The observers’ Deputy Chief, Hannah Roberts, and ANP’s Provincial General Secretary Amin Khattak were present at the meeting. After the meeting, Syed said that the EU observers election report supported the ANP’s claims of rigging. The party had already termed the election staff biased. Furthermore, in some areas of the city, around 90 to 98 percent of the cast votes were illegitimate, alleged Syed. He added that the EU observers’ visit to the MQM’s headquarters, for presenting a copy of the election report, was a definite bold step.

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Tags: 2008, Asia, Election, Observation, Pakistan