Pakistan Views

Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Monday put off bye-elections by two months. The polls would now be held on August 18.The commission has extended the election date for the second time. The election has been extended due to security reasons and preparation of the budget, the ECP said.  The new schedule of the bye-elections will be announced soon, said the election commission sources.

Election Commission has prepared the list of the winning assembly members from more than one constituency.
Muslim League-N’s Makhdoom Javed Hashmi retuned successful from the maximum number of constituencies—NA-55 Rawalpindi, NA-149 Multan and NA-123 Lahore. Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan of the same party declared elected from NA-52 Rawalpindi and NA-53 Rawalpindi. Muslim League-Q’s Anwar Saifullah Khan won from NWFP constituencies PF-74 and PF-75, Rana Tanvir Hussain from the two constituencies of national assembly NA-131 and NA-132 besides Rana Abdul Qadir from NA-112 and PP-124, former CM Chaudhry Pervaiz Ellahi from NA-58 and PP-118, Malik Muhammad Abrar Khan from NA-54 and PP-10, Liaquat Abbas Bhatti from NA-103 and and PP-107, PPP’s Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Quraishi from NA-148 and PP-219, Pir Syed Fazal Ali Shah Jilani from NA-217 and PS-33, PPP’s Vice Chairman Makhdoom Amin Faheem from NA-218 and PS-44, Aftab Sherpao from NA-8 and PF-2, Sardar Mahtab Khan from NA-17 and PF-45, Abdul Akbar Khan from NA-11 and PF-29, Najmuddin Khan from NA-33 and PF-91

Election Commission of Pakistan has made transparent arrangements for general elections, an election commission official here said.
Talking to Geo News Secretary Election Commission Kunwar Dilshad Saturday said that the election material of international standards has been sent to the concerned officials and ballot papers will be handed over to the Returning Officers tomorrow.
Replying a question about election results, Dilshad said the presiding officers have been directed to hold counting in presence of polling agents of candidates and provide the result to them. The presiding officers would forward the results to the Returning Officers who will immediately announce the result, he further said.
They have been also directed to write the results in words as well as in figures, he said.
The copy of the result will also be provided to media and would be put on at the polling station for general public. The result would later sent to the provincial and central election commissions by fax.
Kunwar Dilshad said no code of conduct has been prepared for media regarding the election. “Media can announce results issued by the presiding officer,” he said.
He said the number of sensitive polling stations in the country is between eight to nine thousands. The polling has been withheld in only one national assembly constituency NA-42 due to law and order situation, he said. Elections have been postponed in other constituencies due to demise of the candidates.

Election candidates launched a final push for votes on Saturday, after a US lawmaker warned that Washington could cut military aid if next week’s polls are not free and fair.
Campaigning ends at midnight (1900 GMT) on Saturday and all meetings and processions are banned from then until after Monday’s landmark vote, seen as decisive for the political future of President Pervez Musharraf.
The former ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Q (PML-Q) as well as the opposition party Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and supporters of Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) are all set to rally.
President Musharraf faces possible impeachment if the election installs a hostile parliament.
PPP co-chairperson Asif Ali Zardari, will be in Lahore and is likely to attend a seminar by a regional media association before meeting party delegations, senior party official Naveed Qamar AFP.
Nawaz Sharif has not planned any public meetings but may address a rally in Lahore, his spokesman Zaem Qadir told AFP.
An opposition alliance All Party Democratic Moment (APDM) that is boycotting the vote, including the party of former cricketer Imran Khan and Islamic organisations, is set to hold a meeting at the Pakistan monument ground in the same city.
Campaigning has however been mostly lacklustre in the leadup to the election, due partly to a wave of suicide attacks, most notably the one that martyed Benazir at a political rally on December 27.
Opposition allegations of widespread rigging in favour of Musharraf’s allies (PML-Q) have also left the country’s 81 million eligible voters feeling disenfranchised.
A senior US senator in a Congressional team travelling to monitor the polls said on late Friday that the United States should cut off military aid to Pakistan if the vote is not fair.
Democratic Senator Joseph Biden, who is head of the influential Senate foreign relations committee, also forecast riots throughout Pakistan if the elections were found to be “patently rigged.”
Asked what would be the consequences of unfair elections, he said: “I would move to cut off aid to Pakistan, military aid.” He specifically cited the sale of F-16 fighter jets and P3 long-range maritime surveillance aircraft.
President Musharraf, who has received 10 billion dollars in US aid since 2001, pledged on Thursday that the elections would be fair but warned opposition groups not to protest against the result if they did not accept it.

Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Saturday said there is no restriction on private TV channels to broadcast the incomplete results of the election.

Twelve senior journalists from Saarc countries met Secretary election commission Kunwar Muhammad Dilshad.

During the briefing Kunwar Dilshad said about the security measures that have been taken to make the elections fair.

While speaking to the journalists and media he said that election commission will not release progressive results. He further said that all the necessary arrangements have been made for fair and free election.

He said that returning officer will compose the non-government results both in words and numeric. He added that all the non-government results will be faxed to the central control room Islamabad.

The Elections Commission of Pakistan has advised all the presiding officers to provide certified copies of statement of the count and the ballot paper account to the candidates, their election agents or polling agents.
The spokesman of the Election Commission has drawn the attention of the presiding officers towards the provision of sub-para 11 of Section 38 of the representation of the People Act1976, which relates to the proceedings at the close of the polls.
The spokesman said, “All the presiding officers would provide certified copy of the Statement of the Count (Form-XIV) and the Ballot Paper Account (Form-XV) at the close of the poll to such of the candidates, their election agents or polling agents as maybe present at close of the poll and obtain a receipt for such copies.

The February 18 general elections in the country would be held in a free, fair and impartial manner. This was announced in a statement of the Election Commission of Pakistan issued here on Sunday.

Secretary, Election Commission of Pakistan, Kanwar Muhammad Dilshad, informed that a meeting of the Election Commission was held under the chairmanship of Chief Election Commissioner of Pakistan former Justice Qazi Muhammad Farooq.

The meeting was attended by members, Justice Nasim Sikandar, Judge, Lahore High Court, Justice Ahmed Khan Lashari, judge, High Court of Balochistan, Justice Ghulam Dastagir A. Shahani, Judge, High Court of Sindh and Justice Jehan Zaib Rahim, Judge, Peshwar High Court.

The Secretary Election Commission further said the Election Commission reviewed and expressed satisfaction over the arrangements made so far, for holding free, fair, impartial an credible elections in a peaceful atmosphere.

Besides, the Commission considered the request for change of symbol form certain contesting candidates and declined the requests due to administrative and logistical implications as the ballot papers have already been printed, sealed and kept in safe custody.

The Election Commission also considered the requests for extension of date to issue Postal Ballot Papers, which was declined for the reason that only the date of poll had been extended, which could have no bearing on other stages of the electoral process.

The Election Commission also discussed some other issues, regarding application for deletion of names from ballot papers on the basis of retirement. Secretary, Election Commission of Pakistan said such requests were considered by the Election Commission at Length and were declined.

While considering the details of intra-party elections submitted by 10 political parties, who fulfilled the requirements as laid down in the political Party Order 2002 and the rules framed there-under, it was decided that the same may be published in the official Gazette and placed on record.

The Election Commission resolved that the up-coming general elections will be held on February 18, 2008, honestly, justly fairly and in accordance with the law.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has decided to declare 30 percent polling stations as sensitive for the upcoming general elections in the country.

Talking to Geo News in Karachi, Secretary election commission Kunwar Muhammad Dilshad said the work is on progress to declare 30 percent of the total polling stations in the country as sensitive.

The ECP has directed the provinces to dispatch lists of the sensitive polling stations to the commission soon, he further said.

After complaints about transfers of officials in Sindh, the provincial government has cancelled the transfers on intervention of the election commission, Dilshad said.

The election commission has reiterated to the provinces to avoid transfers of officials till completion of the electoral process, he added.

Secretary of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) Kunwar Muhammad Dilshad Saturday said no political party including People’s Party (PPP) requested for the holding of the elections under the inspection of army.
Addressing a briefing here, Kunwar Muhammad Dilshad said the Government of Sindh has revoked the transfers of senior officials on the directive of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC), Justice (Retd) Qazi Muhammad Farooq. The Provincial Election Commissioner, Sindh, Chaudhry Qamar-uz-Zaman, was also present on the occasion.
Dilshad said that the four to five important transfers included those of DPO Sukkur, DPO Tando Muhammad Khan and DCO Nausheroferoze.
He stated that about these transfers there were observations and reservations on the part of some of the political parties.
The Secretary ECP said that in order to address these, the Government of Sindh has withdrawn these important transfers and the officials have been restored to their previous positions.
“This augurs well”, he remarked and pointed out that the Government of Sindh has assured that in future no transfer would be effected without the permission of the ECP.
The ECP is moving ahead in a systematic manner with regard to complaints that are being received by it.
Dilshad said that this process is handled in a transparent manner and on the Internet. This has also been observed by the representatives of the European Union in Pakistan and that they are happy about it.
He also pointed out that when the ECP refers a complaint to the District and Sessions Judge (DSJ), he issues notice promptly to the person concerned.
The Secretary ECP informed that about 1,400 complaints have been received from all over the country and of these, 400 have been disposed of so far and matter resolved amicably.
He said that in the wake of the tragic event of December 27,2007, offices of the ECP in 11 districts of Sindh were also affected. All these offices of the ECP in the province have been activated and all the election related material is being dispatched to these offices today.
Dilshad reiterated that the general elections will be held as per schedule on February 18. There are as many as 13,405 polling stations in Sindh and of these, about 5,000 have been declared as sensitive. The provincial government is chalking out a strategy regarding this, he added.
Dilshad declared that the entire machinery of the ECP is fully active for the February 18 general elections and that all the preparations are complete.
He assured that all the required arrangements are being made for holding these polls in a fair, free and transparent manner.

Chief Election Commissioner Justice (rtd) Qazi Mohammed Farooq Wednesday said that stern action would be taken against the publication of biased advertisement in newspapers.He said this while talking to Caretaker Minister for Human Rights Ansar Burney. The minister said true democracy lies in fostering respect for each others’ views. Both discussed the measures for holding free and fair elections in the country. The minister also drew Chief Election Commissioner’s attention towards an advertisement by a political party, which aimed at spreading hate and bias, especially against Sindhi people.He stressed upon all the political parties to refrain from issuing such statements which smack of sowing seeds of contention among the provinces.The minister requested the CEC to take strict notice of these advertisements and statements spreading hatred among residents of all provinces.Burney pointed out that collective efforts were needed to contain the specter of bias attitude.CEC Qazi Farooq assured him that ECP would take appropriate legal action against the publication of such advertisements.