Politics

ECP pledges to hold general elections by mid-Feb

Published

11 months ago

Farwa

ANP, BNP and BAP hold consultative meetings with ECP.
ECP assures of squeezing timelines of delimitation.
Election schedule is expected to be issued soon.

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Wednesday dispelled speculations surrounding the upcoming general elections, assuring the Awami National Party (ANP) that polls would be held by mid-February at the most or by January end if the delimitation of constituencies is completed earlier.

The statement came after ANP, Balochistan National Party (BNP) and Balochistan Awami Party (BAP) held separate consultative meetings with the ECP officials on the roadmap to general election.

Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja chaired the meetings, which were attended by the commission members, the secretary and senior ECP officers.

The ANP delegation was led by its Secretary General Mian Iftikhar Hussain, comprising central spokesperson Zahid Khan, Khushdil Khan, Advocate, and Abdul Rahim Wazir, Advocate.

On behalf of the BAP, Naseebullah, Manzoor Kakar, Noor Muhammad Domar, Sardar Abdul Rehman Khetran appeared and BNP was represented by Abdul Karim Noshrawani, Sana Jamali and Danesh Kumar.

The commission, ANP leaders said, assured them of squeezing the timelines of delimitation to the maximum possible extent. The commission also assured them elections would not go beyond mid-February.

According to a statement released by the commission, the ANP team insisted on the date and schedule for the electoral exercise, if conducting the election within 90 days was not feasible. They briefed the election commission that the election should be held within 90 days as per the Constitution and that the ECP should have consulted political parties before initiating delimitation, as the commission could not reduce or increase the seats given in the provinces given under the Constitution. Therefore, there was no need for new delimitation.

The ECP, they said, could only accommodate seats within the province and that the commission was a constitutional body and they had full faith in it.

Therefore, the delimitation decision taken by the commission must have been taken after due deliberation. Therefore, now the date and schedule for elections should also be announced so that political parties and people could be satisfied.

The CEC said that according to the schedule issued by the commission, the delimitation work was to be completed within 120 days on December 14, 2023. The election schedule would be announced soon after. It is also possible that the election schedule will be announced in the next few days after reducing the duration of the constituency.

The BAP delegation supported the ECP decision to carry out delimitation and members of the delegation said that because the results of the census had been published, not going for delimitation as per the new census would be an insult to political parties, candidates and the public. The BAP expressed full confidence in the ECP and also expressed confidence in several decisions taken by it in the past.

BNP representative Agha Hassan Baloch said the ECP should try to hold elections within 90 days. He noted the new census appeared to be faulty, in which the population of Balochistan had been reduced. “Therefore, our party believes that there is no use of new delimitation. If the election commission believes that delimitation is necessary, then the process should be corrected,” he said.

The CEC assured the delegations that the commission would ensure immediate elections after reducing the duration of delimitation.

Talking to media persons outside the ECP, Mian Iftikhar said the electoral body had assured completing the delimitation of constituencies on fast track to enable it to hold general election not later than mid-February.

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Containers were used to seal the Red Zone before JI’s sit-in at D-Chowk.

Published

17 hours ago

Farwa

Authorities in Islamabad have blocked off the Red Zone by erecting containers in front of today’s (Friday) Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) demonstration and the Jamaat-i-Islami sit-in at D-Chowk in Islamabad.

Jamaat-i-Islami is scheduled to stage a sit-in at Islamabad’s D-Chowk, and the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) has declared a nationwide protest against the country’s soaring inflation and recent spike in electricity rates.

Containers have been used to block access to the Red Zone’s main crossroads, D Chowk, Nadra Chowk, and Sarina Chowk.

ISLAMABAD, PUNJAB SECTION 144

In the meantime, in response to PTI and JI plans for statewide rallies, the federal and Punjabi governments enforced Section 144 in Islamabad and Punjab. Section 144 will be in force from Friday, July 26 to Sunday, July 28, per the notification that was released in this regard.

Rallies, sit-ins, protests, and rallies are prohibited from July 26 to July 28, according to a letter from the Home Department. It said that terrorists may find public gatherings to be an easy target and stated that the decision had been made with the threat of terrorism in mind.

In contrast, JI Secretary General Ameerul Azeem claimed in a statement that police had raided the residences of JI officials across the nation.

In an attempt to break up the protest, he said, police had targeted JI leaders and activists. He also alleged that multiple instances of police raids, arrests, and harassment of women had occurred in various towns.

GOVT ADVISED

The government was forewarned by Jamaat Emir Hafiz Naeemur Rehman earlier on Thursday that it would face consequences if the party was barred from accessing Islamabad for their scheduled demonstration against inflation and an increase in electricity prices.

He stated in a statement that their belief is in peaceful political protest as a means of securing public rights. “We are not afraid of arrests, and the Jamaat-e-Islami cannot be stopped,” he added.

“The historic sit-in on Friday, July 26, will represent 250 million people of Pakistan, and we will sit peacefully at D-Chowk.”

According to the JI, convoys are in route from all around the nation to participate in the sit-in. He encouraged the administration to offer a location for the protest, highlighting that it is their constitutional and democratic right to speak up for the country.

“Any political party that wishes to participate” was invited, and he welcomed them all.

Prior to the sit-in, police raided the residences of JI leaders and officials in many parts of Punjab and Rawalpindi, making multiple arrests.

Ameerul Azim, the central secretary general of Jamaat-e-Islami, was not able to be arrested during the police raid; instead, Shaukat Mahmood, his driver, was taken into custody.

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The Socioeconomic Registry of Punjab. Real data gathering is essential to effective governance. Maryam

Published

17 hours ago

Farwa

Maryam Nawaz Sharif, the chief minister of Punjab, announced that the province will introduce the “Apna Ghar Scheme,” adding that accurate data collecting is necessary in order to provide social security to the impoverished.

At the Punjab Socio-Economic Registry’s opening event in Lahore, the Maryam announced that the province’s government has started the “Roshan Gharana” project, which aims to provide 4.5 million individuals with solar panels on manageable installment plans.

Maryam Nawaz, who emphasized the necessity of centralized data, stated that data has become increasingly important in recent years since it makes basic amenities more accessible and aids in the classification of the poor.

She stated that several initiatives are being taken by the Punjabi government to assist those with disabilities.

The Punjab government, led by Chief Minister Maryam Nawaz Sharif, is dedicated to providing relief to the poor, according to Senior Provincial Minister Punjab Marriyum Aurangzeb, who spoke on the occasion.

The government, she noted, is concentrating on health and education services.

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The ECP asks the SC to clarify the ruling in the PTI reserved seat case.

Published

2 days ago

Farwa

Seeking clarity on a court ruling concerning the allotment of particular seats to the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) moved the Supreme Court on Monday.

ECP members reportedly agreed unanimously on the SC’s decision to consult the SC.

Particularly cited under Paragraph 10 of the Supreme Court ruling, the ECP has called attention to vagueness in the ruling. In order to determine which body is in charge of party certificate issuance, the ECP is asking the Supreme Court for advice.

Concerning the validity of PTI’s party structure, the ECP pointed out that the organisation hasn’t held internal elections.

In the lack of distinct party organisation and intra-party elections, there is ambiguity over which certifications hold recognition.

Position of ECP

The absence of intra-party elections, according to ECP sources, prevents Tehreek-e-Insaaf from operating as a legitimate organisation.

A plea for clarification on party certificate authority and recognition has been made to the Supreme Court by the ECP.

Resolving the existing ambiguity and guaranteeing proper electoral processes will depend on the Supreme Court’s clarity on these issues.

Continue reading: ECP orders implementation of SC ruling regarding PTI reserved seats

Previous to this, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) reserved seat verdict will be implemented, according to a Friday announcement made by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) of Pakistan.

On Friday, a meeting of ECP members was chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja.

If the SC ruling is being carried out with any judicial decision becoming a roadblock, ECP has resolved to seek guidance from the judges in the room.

“The Supreme Court will be consulted for additional guidance in the event of any obstacles,” the ECP statement stated.

ECP declines resignation demand and political party criticism.

The chief election commissioner and members have been the target of persistent attack from a political party, which the highest electoral authority has sharply denounced. No political name was mentioned by the ECP.

The ECP called the demand for resignation from the party “absurd” and rejected the political party’s unjustified criticism, which had been made continuously.

Regardless of the pressure, the statement said, ECP would keep up its adherence to the law and the Constitution.