ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), so far, has failed to issue by-elections’ schedule for seven of eight legislative seats of National Assembly and provincial assemblies despite announcing to hold by-elections on these seats and appointing electoral staff for this purpose a couple of days ago.
The ECP announced by-elections on eight seats earlier Thursday. But on Friday, the ECP issued by-polls schedule for only one seat — Sindh Assembly’s PS-52 Umerkot-II where by-elections are scheduled on January 18 next year. The ECP, also on Friday appointed District Returning Officers (DROs), Returning Officers (ROs) and Assistant Returning Officers (AROs) for by-polls on the remaining seven seats but polling date was not announced till filing of this report on Friday evening.
The seats are: Sindh Assembly’s PS-43 Sanghar-III and PS-88 Malir-II, Punjab Assembly’s PP-51 Gujranwala-I, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Assembly’s PK-63 Nowshera-III, Balochistan Assembly’s PB-20 Pishin-III and National Assembly’s NA-45 Kurram-I and NA-75 Sialkot-IV.
The ECP announcement to hold by-polls came just over two weeks after postponing these polls till January 31 next year on the recommendation of National Command and Operation Centre (NCOC) in the backdrop of rapid spread of COVID-19 across the country that has claimed hundreds of precious lives. Moreover, the electoral body announced by-polls on the demand of Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and its Sindh government without consulting the federal government, all the other three provinces and any other political party except PPP.
The decision was taken in a meeting presided over by Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja attended by senior ECP officials as well as PPP leader Taj Haider, Chief Minister Sindh’s Law Advisor Murtaza Wahab and other senior Sindh government officials on Thursday.
No representative from the federal government and other three provincial governments attended the meeting, ECP admitted in a press release issued after the meeting.
Copyright Business Recorder, 2020