Ebrahim breaks his silence, rejects allegations by Imran

Former Chief Election Commissioner former Justice Fakhruddin G Ebrahim has rejected allegations of any pressure from the former Chief Justice Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry during 2013 general elections. According to him, the army should have been given more role to support the Election Commission and that elections should have been held in phases.
Talking to a group of journalists here on Friday, the former CEC said serving judges should have been posted at the election tribunals and urged politicians to show patience and not to allow democracy to derail. The former CEC broke his silence after 375 days since he resigned on 31st July, 2013 after allegations of irregularities in the May 11 elections.
Answering a question about allegations by PTI chief Imran Khan that the then Chief Justice of the Supreme Court Iftikhar Mohammad Chaudhry pressurised the Election Commission and Returning Officers, Ebrahim said there was no pressure on him. He, however, pointed out certain lacunae in the elections and said if three other issues had been taken care of, better results could have been achieved from the elections. He said the first and foremost thing was that army should have more role to assist the Election Commission. He said though the then Army Chief, General Ashfaq Parvez Kayani, extended support and he (CEC) had requested the posting of an army officer at every polling station. But, he added, his suggestion was not accepted.
Secondly, the elections should have been held in phases as was being done in a neighbouring country. He said by holding elections in phases, limited resources could be better utilised. He said the members of the Election Commission could not agree on this point.
Thirdly, Ebrahim said, he had requested Justice Iftikhar Chaudhry to allow the appointment of serving judges at the election tribunals, but he too did not agree. The former chief election commissioner advised political leaders to play their role towards the establishment of a strong Election Commission. He said it should be made mandatory for all on the voters' list to cast their vote. He said if these points are addressed, the Election Commission will become strong. He said politicians should not become part of the Election Commission.