PESHAWAR, Dec 27: Despite having the highest literacy rate in the Frontier province, Haripur district’s 400,000 voters have been represented by either a member of a tycoon family or a scion of the landed gentry in every election — from local bodies to the National Assembly.

According to a survey, the coming election is set to repeat the same story as Omar Ayub Khan, grandson of a military dictator; Dr Raja Amir Zaman Khan, son of a pro-establishment politician who served as caretaker chief minister in 1996; and Sardar Mohammad Mushtaq Khan, scion of one of the biggest landlords of the district, are vying for NA-19, Haripur.

The Ayub and Raja families are arch-rivals in politics. The people of Haripur have so for failed to free themselves from the political hold of the two-family system. Both the families are entrenched in the establishment. They are partyless, but not apolitical. After winning their seats they join the party which forms the government. Analysts call them ‘sunflowers’ because they keep their gaze fixed towards the sun of power.

Gen Mohammad Ayub Khan, the county’s first military ruler, hailed from Haripur. He imposed martial law on Oct 8, 1958, abrogated the 1956 Constitution, banned political parties and made newspapers a government mouthpiece by setting up the National Press Trust.

His sons, Gohar Ayub Khan and Akhtar Ayub Khan, joined politics during his rule. Akhtar was a man of the masses and a member of C.R. Aslam’s Pakistan Socialist Party. He would interpret the complicated surplus value theory of Karl Marx in simplest terms in the Hindko language. He was popular among factory workers and peasants.

In the past, Haripur has elected Gohar Ayub Khan, Yousuf Ayub Khan and Omar Ayub Khan to the national and provincial assemblies.

The late Raja Sikandar Zaman was an old parliamentarian and the last cultured man of his feudal class.

He was famed for both his generosity and rural political tactics. He was an arch-rival of the Ayub family.

Now his sons, Dr Raja Amir Zaman and Raja Faisal Zaman, are contesting for the NA-19 and PF-49 seats, respectively. Raja Amir, an independent candidate, is running against Omar Ayub, son of Gohar Ayub Khan, for NA-19, while his younger brother Raja Faisal, a nominee of Jamiat Ulema-i-Islam, is contesting against Raja Shiraz Haider of the Pakistan Muslim League (Nawaz).

In 2001, Raja Amir defeated Omar Ayub in the election for district nazim. Raja Shiraz Haider, who had defeated Raja Faisal in the union council election, was beaten by Raja Faisal in the general election.

Haripur is the largest National Assembly constituency in the province as it spreads from the hills of Islamabad to the other side of River Indus. It abuts on six districts. It has 484,025 voters. In 2002, the turnout was 45.44 per cent.

A three-pronged contest is expected among Sardar Mohammad Mushtaq of the PML-N, Omar Ayub of the PML-Q and Raja Amir Zaman, an independent candidate, for NA-19.

A majority of Omar Ayub’s old supporters have joined Raja Amir’s camp. Sardar Mushtaq, who had fought all the previous elections from the Gohar Ayub group, is now challenging his old allies. His entry has made the contest interesting and Mian Nawaz Sharif himself is going to Haripur to address a public meeting.

Former MPA Qazi Mohammad Asad, who had bagged the provincial assembly seat, PF-50, as a nominee of the PML-Q in 2002 is contesting the same seat against Arshad Ayub Khan, younger brother of district nazim Yousuf Ayub and nephew of Gohar Ayub, and Dr Faiza Rasheed of the Pakistan People’s Party.

Sardar Mushtaq has made seat adjustment with Ms Rasheed to bag anti-Ayub urban votes.

Qazi Asad was the only MPA from the ‘king’s party’ who refused to vote for Gen Pervez Musharraf on Oct 6. He wanted to contest on a PML-N ticket but the party’s local office-bearers, mostly loyal to the Ayub family, outwitted him.

The PML-N has no candidate from central Haripur.

Former provincial minister Akhtar Nawaz Khan is running as an independent candidate against Zulfiqar Ahmed Khan of the PML-N for PF-51 (Haripur-III).

Zulfiqar’s family also has an understanding with the Ayub group.

Former MPA Faisal Zaman is no more in the race after the rejection of his educational documents.

Pir Mohammad Sabir Shah may easily win from PF-52 ( Haripur-IV).

Local politics has its own charms and idiosyncrasies. It is not yet clear whom Sabir Shah and Zulfiqar Khan will support in the National Assembly election.