Global media is divided over Pakistan's general elections held amid security unrest and political disconnection; However, the shutdown of connectivity on election day and the painfully slow release of unofficial results have led to accusations of manipulation that cast doubt on the overall credibility of voting around the world.
Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan People's Party (PPP) and independent candidates supported by Imran Khan's Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) are virtually tied for the majority of seats in the national legislature. The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is finally starting to release the results after a prolonged delay amid mixed reactions from the international community.
He bbc reported that the PTI claimed to be leading with more than 100 seats due to the first delay in the publication of results and the unofficial early election results that were published by local television channels.
But the ECP distanced itself from “the unofficial and incomplete results” reported by local media, blaming the government's suspension of telephone and Internet services for the delay in announcing the results.
Many candidates have accused the commission of altering the election results, and the whole matter has generated controversy around the results that the commission has officially announced.
Meanwhile, Iran's ambassador to Pakistan, Raza Amiri Moghadam, congratulated the government for a “safe and secure” election.
On Friday, Joe Biden's administration said the people of Pakistan should choose their future leaders based on their free will.
“Millions of Pakistanis went to the polls today to vote, and I will reiterate that the future leadership of Pakistan is up to the Pakistani people to decide, and our interest remains in the democratic process,” State Department deputy spokesman Vedant Patel told reporters. journalists in their newspaper. Press conference.
He denounced any acts of violence related to the elections, both in the weeks before and during election day on February 8.
“We believe that this type of election-related violence affected a wide range of political parties across Pakistan. It affected polling stations, election officials and the election commission,” he said while expressing concern over restrictions on the exercise. of freedom of expression.
This election is among Pakistan's least credible and the results were published later than in previous elections, according to analysts.
Around 44 parties ran for seats in the National Assembly, although most experts agree that there is only one candidate for the top job: former prime minister Nawaz Sharif.
In addition to international political representatives, global media organizations also aligned mixed political ideologies in their coverage of Pakistan's elections.
cnn and the bbc hinted at lack of credibility and manipulation amid violence during Pakistani elections.
Time published an article with the title “Pakistan's elections are being blatantly rigged. Why does the United States seem not to care?”, which summarized the chronological history of the PTI after the May 9 riots and the expectations of the international community about these elections. .
Other international media also reported on fraud during these elections and separately analyzed the winning capabilities of the three main parties.
