ISLAMABAD: Pir Adil Gillani from Pakistan Muslim League Nawaz (PML-N) was elected as the Mayor of Islamabad on Monday after defeating Malik Sajid Mehmood from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) in the mayoral election whose outcome was apparently obvious due to PML-N's visible majority in the Metropolitan Corporation of Islamabad (MCI).
Gillani bagged 43 electoral college votes compared to 26 votes Sajid received in the poll.
The MCI comprises 50 Union Councils (UCs) located in Islamabad Capital Territory (ICT). Each UC has 13 members including a chairman, a vice chairman, six general members, two women, one peasant/worker, one youth member and one non-Muslim. The total number of MCI members is 650 that form electoral college of 73 votes.
PML-N has majority in MCI with 47 electoral college votes compared to PTI's 25 votes.
Gillani would serve as mayor for over two months as the term of MCI would expire on the coming February 14.
On October 1 this year, Sheikh Anser Aziz, the mayor of Islamabad, from PML-N, tendered his resignation due to his reported differences with federal government.
On the fourth of this month, around two-and-a-half months after his resignation, Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) finally announced mayor election and fixed December 28 as polling date for mayoral poll.
Under the law, the ECP was required to hold election on the vacant seat within 30 days from the date it was notified as vacant. However, the ECP issued election schedule for mayor Islamabad's election only on December 4, over two months after the mayor's seat fall vacant.
Section 31 of the Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act 2015 reads, "If the office of a mayor, deputy mayor, chairman or vice chairman, or a member indirectly elected on a reserved seat, for any reason, falls vacant during the term of office of a local government, the new mayor, deputy mayor, chairman, vice chairman or member shall be elected in the prescribed manner within thirty days from the date when such vacancy is notified and he shall, subject to this Act, hold office for the remaining term of the local government."
In the light of Section 33 (1) and (2) of Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act 2015, the resignation of the mayor stands accepted and becomes effective forthwith after it is tendered.
This section reads "(1) A mayor, deputy mayor, chairman, vice chairman or a member may resign his office by tendering resignation in writing under his hand to the local government of which he is the mayor, deputy mayor, chairman, vice chairman or a member. (2) The resignation tendered under sub-section (1) shall be deemed to have been accepted and effective forthwith and the local government shall forward copies of the resignation to the Election Commission and the government."
Mayor's resignation is notified by the (federal) government. Section 36 (2) (b) reads, "The government shall notify - (b) election, appointment or vacation office, owing to any cause, of the mayor, deputy mayor, chairman or vice chairman."
Sources in ECP said the electoral body sought the input from Ministry of Law and Justice, and Ministry of Interior after the mayor's office fell vacant but they did not respond. However, on December 1, finally, the officials of both the ministries informed the ECP, in a top-level meeting presided over by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, that the ECP had final say in deciding about mayor's election following which the ECP issued the schedule for mayor election on December 4.
The term of local bodies in Islamabad is five years that started since the local bodies held their first official meeting.
Section 29 (1) of Islamabad Capital Territory Local Government Act reads, "-the term of office of a local government shall be five years commencing on the date on which it holds its first meeting." The first meeting of MCI was held on February 15, 2016, which elected Anser as first mayor of Islamabad. This implies that the MCI's term would end on February 14, 2021.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020
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