ISLAMABAD:
The Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) on Tuesday renewed its call for elections to be held within the constitutionally mandated 90-day period following the dissolution of the National Assembly on August 9. This comes as attention continues to focus on the Election Commission of Pakistan’s (ECP) ongoing consultations over the electoral roadmap.
During a meeting with the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) at its Islamabad headquarters, the party once again demanded quick elections. The ECP’s rejection of holding elections this year was in response to the PPP’s request, despite the fact that the 90-day window for doing so will close on November 9.
The new digital 2023 census results notice and Section 17(2) of the Elections Act, which mandates that delimitation of constituencies be done following every legally published census, are cited by the electoral watchdog as justification for postponing elections.
Following their meeting on Tuesday, PPP argued that elections should be held within the time frame specified in Article 224 of the Constitution after the dissolution of an assembly.
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Nayyar Bukhari, head of the PPP, stated the party’s position during interviews with the media outside the ECP: “The PPP wants the ECP to declare a new election date and the schedule for it. The public is anxious, thus it’s crucial that a new election date and schedule be announced soon.
In light of the ECP’s response, the PPP will hold a meeting of its central executive committee in Lahore to plan the party’s next steps.PPP Vice President Sherry Rehman remarked, “We had a meeting with the ECP in a pleasant environment during which we put all our reservations.” She emphasized that it is the duty of the electoral body to organize the voting process.
She stressed that elections must take place within 90 days after the National Assembly’s dissolution, as required by the constitution.
The PPP told the ECP that the delimitation procedure wouldn’t be too time-consuming because there wouldn’t be any major shifts in the distribution of province seats in the NA, as confirmed by former commerce minister Naveed Qamar.
He reported that the ECP had told the PPP that they will think about the issue and maybe provide a fresh delimitation timeline.They added that the election date would be announced soon afterward.
Sherry Rehman, Faisal Karim Kundi, Syed Murad Ali Shah, Nayyar Bukhari, and Naveed Qamar were all part of the PPP group that attended the meeting.
Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) has been called to meet with the ECP today (Wednesday) at 2pm, and a delegation from the Awami National Party (ANP) including Mian Iftikhar Hussain, Zahid Khan, Wakil Khushdil, and Wakil Rahim will meet with the ECP at 11am.
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“There will be consultations with BAP on general elections,” ECP added.
Delimitation will be completed “as soon as possible” by the ECP.
The PPP’s demands were echoed by the ECP, which urged the commission to shorten the delimitation process and set a date for elections “as soon as possible” so that the economy could recover, the political crisis could be contained, and uncertainty could be put to rest.
The team was reassured by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja that elections will be held as soon as the delimitation process was finished.
Elections that can be trusted require the posting and movement of key officers.
Meanwhile, CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja presided over two important sessions at the ECP secretariat in Islamabad with the chief secretaries and inspector generals of Sindh and Balochistan in preparation for the next general elections.
Election commissioners, the secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan, provincial election commissioners from Sindh and Balochistan, and other high-ranking officials of the electoral watchdog all participated in the meetings.
The ECP met with the chief secretary of Sindh and the provincial inspector general, who both briefed them on the state of election preparations and pledged their complete cooperation.
The ECP’s primary duty is to ensure that elections are conducted fairly and openly, and this has been repeatedly emphasized by the electoral watchdog. So, moving and appointing key officers and officials for fair elections would be the initial step in realizing this objective.
The ECP released guidelines for the required transfers and postings, calling attention to the fact that this is the initial step toward openness.
After that, we’ll start putting together our teams of watchdogs and returning officers to make sure everything goes smoothly on election day.
The ECP emphasized the critical importance of submitting transfer and posting bids as soon as possible because of the short timeline for elections. It pledged its unwavering support and cooperation to Sindh’s chief secretary and IG.
The provincial election commissioner of Balochistan, along with the chief secretary and IG of Balochistan, updated the commission on election preparations in the second meeting. Several officers, deputy commissioners, and extra deputy commissioners have been recommended for postings and transfers, and the commission has been advised of this by the chief secretary.
Other postings and transfers will be handled in compliance with ECP directives, but these suggestions put officers’ performance and merit first.
The Balochistan chief secretary further noted that the infrastructure of polling stations that were damaged by the floods would be maintained. Meanwhile, the Balochistan IG gave a presentation on the state of safety in the province.
The ECP told the chief secretary and IG of Balochistan to be fair in their work and promised them complete support.The ECP is a constitutional and impartial body, and CEC Sikandar Sultan Raja reaffirmed the commission’s commitment to conducting free and fair elections in conformity with the constitution and the law.
