KARACHI: Murtaza Wahab, a member of the Pakistan People Party (PPP), has achieved victory in the Local Bodies (LB) by-elections in Sindh, retaining his position as mayor of Karachi.
Unofficial results indicate that Murtaza Wahab secured 3,976 votes in UC-13 Saddar Town, defeating his opponent, a joint candidate from PTI and JI, who received 1,566 votes.
In UC-3 Maripur Town, PPP’s Saifullah received 5,466 votes, while JI candidate Muhammad Hussain garnered 788 votes. Additionally, in three polling stations of UC-3 in Qadirpur Ghotki, PPP’s candidate Bashir Bhutto secured 509 votes, while JI’s Barkat Bhutto received 412 votes. PPP also claimed victory in all four seats in Khairpur, including two municipal committees, one town committee, and one district councilor seat.
Salman Murad of PPP emerged victorious with 10,215 votes in all 27 polling stations of UC Murad Memon, with JI’s Ayub Khaskheli securing the second position with 1,408 votes.
Mayor Murtaza Wahab, talking TV channels, attributed the victory to PPP leadership and workers. He expressed confidence that PPP would also succeed in the general elections and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will become the next Prime Minister of Pakistan.
Earlier in the day, LB by-elections in 16 districts of Sindh concluded with stringent security measures. The polling, which took place from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm without interruption, involved 182 polling stations, with 109 being highly sensitive and 100 categorized as sensitive, according to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
Robust security measures were put in place to ensure a peaceful and fair electoral process.
In June, Murtaza Wahab and Salman Abdullah Murad were sworn in as Karachi mayor and deputy mayor, respectively. Wahab secured the position of Karachi mayor with 173 votes, defeating JI’s candidate Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, who received 160 votes. The city council members elected them in a poll held at the Karachi Arts Council under tight security, with 332 elected members present at the polling station, as 34 members failed to reach the venue for voting.
