PPP clears the air, says Asif Zardari, Bilawal to contest by-polls with same symbols

KAACHI - Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Thursday refuted the rumours that Asif Ali Zardari and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari will contest the by-elections for National Assembly seats with different symbols instead of the arrow that is their party symbol.

The spokesperson of PPP made it clear that both members of the party will participate in by-elections with the same symbol, adding that an application will be submitted to the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to allot it.

Earlier, the local media had reported that former president Asif Ali Zardari and his son Bilawal will contest by-polls from Sindh using different election symbols.

Under Section 5 (3) of the Political Parties Order 2002, a person cannot be a member of more than one political party at the same time.

It is important to mention here that Asif Ali Zardari was president of the Pakistan Peoples Party Parliamentarians (PPP-P) and Bilawal Bhutto Zardari was the chief of the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) according to the list of political parties enlisted with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).

The PPP-P had been given the symbol of ‘arrow’ and the PPP ‘two swords’ by the ECP prior to the 2013 elections.

The PPP had formed a separate entity, PPP-P, in August 2002 to meet the requirements of a decree issued by then military ruler, Pervez Musharraf.