Pakistan lawmakers take oath despite allegations of election rigging
Published on: March 1, 2024.
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Lawmakers took their oaths of office during the first sitting of Pakistan’s new parliament, which was held three weeks after a controversial election. The election, which took place on February 8, was marred by allegations of rigging and censorship targeting the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party and its leader, former prime minister Imran Khan, who was jailed and barred from running. Despite the crackdown, PTI emerged as the party with the most seats, but the military-backed Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is expected to form a coalition government that will exclude PTI from power.
Under the coalition agreement, former premier Shehbaz Sharif, who ousted Khan in a no-confidence vote in 2022, is set to be elected as prime minister again in the coming days. The swearing-in ceremony took place in the National Assembly in Islamabad, with parliamentarians from different parties taking their oaths of office. PTI members, who ran as independents due to restrictions, arrived at parliament with portraits of Imran Khan, expressing their support in the face of the crackdown.
The PML-N has agreed to govern with the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and several smaller factions. In exchange, the PPP has been promised the position of president for their leader, Asif Ali Zardari, who is also the widower of slain ex-premier Benazir Bhutto. The specific cabinet positions are yet to be announced.
Analysts view the coalition as fragile, as Pakistan is grappling with economic and security crises. There are concerns about the legitimacy of the PML-N coalition, as some members of the public doubt whether their votes were accurately counted. The election was also clouded by the nationwide mobile internet blackout and delayed results, which further fuelled rigging allegations.
Source: [Zawya](https://www.zawya.com)
