About 44 per cent of people in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) think Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) will win the elections on July 25, according to a survey conducted by Gallup Pakistan.
As far as other political parties are concerned, the survey-which was carried out in all 10 districts of AJK-suggested that 12 per cent of people in the region think Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) will win, whereas only nine per cent expect Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) to come out on top.
Around 53 per cent of respondents in AJK believe that the elections will be free and fair, with 30 per cent thinking in the opposite direction, while 17 per cent were unsure.
According to the survey, 94 per cent of respondents were likely to vote in the upcoming election while six per cent have no intention to vote.
Prime Minister Imran Khan appeared as the most trusted political leader in the survey, with close to 67 per cent expressing a positive rating about him as a leader. On the other hand, 47 per cent kept a positive opinion of PML-N leader Nawaz Sharif, while 48 per cent have a positive outlook of Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Shehbaz Sharif.
On the perception of the performance of the current rulers of AJK, 60 per cent of respondents were satisfied with the performance of AJK Prime Minister Raja Farooq Haider, while 44 per cent expressed satisfaction with the performance of AJK President Sardar Masood Khan.
Broken and poorly maintained roads were cited as the biggest problem by 24 per cent of respondents in AJK. Similarly, around 13 per cent said lack of clean drinking water was a major problem, whereas ten per cent believed electricity load shedding needed immediate attention. At least 58 per cent expressed dissatisfaction over the government’s health services in the area.
Regarding security in AJK, 86 per cent of respondents were satisfied with the overall peace and security situation. Moreover, 55 per cent were satisfied with the transport services in their area. 44 per cent in AJK expressed satisfaction with the electricity supply in their area, while 52 per cent expressed dissatisfaction in this regard.
The survey suggested that over 70 per cent in AJK complained about the lack of gas supply in their area, with only 10 per cent satisfied in this regard.
The Gallup Pakistan survey also revealed that 39 per cent of people from AJK said that someone from their immediate family lives abroad. 33 per cent said that someone from their immediate family lives outside Kashmir but within Pakistan.
