Islamabad:
The Election Commission in Pakistan (ECP) ordered the Punjab government on Wednesday to speed up the legislative process, enabling the Commission to begin demarcation and secure timely election of local government.
A full bench of the Election Commission, led by the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja, issued the instructions during a consultation on the matter relating to the local government election in Punjab at the Secretariat of the Election Commission.
During the hearing, the Secretary of the Election Commission revealed while he helped the Commission that successive provincial governments in Punjab have changed electoral laws five times at different intervals.
The Election Commission completed boundaries three times, updated election rolls twice and issued schedules for election of local government.
Despite these efforts, holding the local government elections in the province has not been possible. The secretary emphasized the challenges that face due to frequent changes in laws and procedures, which emphasized the need for stability to ensure timely choices.
CEC RAJA emphasized that the ECP under Article 140-A (2) and Article 219 (d) of the Constitution, as well as section 219 of the Election Act, are constitutional mandate to implement local government elections in both federal and provincial territories.
The top election commissioner regretted that no provincial government is ever prepared to hold local elections. He noted that every time the Election Commission completes its preparations, the provincial governments change laws and force the ECP to restart the entire election process.
The ECP has managed to have chosen the choice of local government in three provinces and cantons after considerable effort.
