By Staff Reporter
ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has raised concerns about the dilution of its authority by judicial overbearing and proposed new legislation to remove the President’s role in setting the date for general elections.
In letters addressed to National Assembly Speaker Raja Pervaiz Ashraf and Senate Chairman Sadiq Sanjrani, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sikandar Sultan Raja has suggested amending Sections 57(1) and 58 of the Elections Act, 2017.
The proposed amendments would restore the ECP’s power to announce and change election schedules without third-party intervention.
The letter asks the speaker, and Senate chairman to end the president’s role in setting a poll date; blames ‘judicial overbearing’ for hampering the commission’s work
“The role of the president to appoint a date for a poll in case of dissolution of the National Assembly on the advice of the prime minister or the dissolution of the National Assembly on expiry of the term is not supported by any constitutional provision.”
According to the letters, Section 11 of the original People’s Representation Act of 1976 empowered the Commission to set election dates unilaterally without outside interference.
However, this section was amended by Ordinance No. 11 of 1985, which created the role of the President in holding elections at his discretion.
The ECP argues that the President’s appointment of a poll date is not supported by any constitutional provision, and the proposed amendments seek to restore the Commission’s mandate under Article 218(3) and 219.
The letter said recent judicial rulings, including those on the conduct of general elections within 90 days under Article 224(2), have undermined the ECP’s constitutional powers.
It cites examples of the disappearance of 20 presiding officers during the Daska by-polls in February 2021 and the suspension of ECP orders by high courts as evidence of the erosion of the Commission’s authority.
The CEC questions whether the ECP can perform its duty to conduct free, fair, and transparent elections in the current environment.
The proposed amendments seek to address these issues by restoring the ECP’s authority to conduct elections without interference from third parties. The CEC calls on lawmakers to consider the amendments and protect the ECP’s mandate under the Constitution.
Copyright © 2021 Independent Pakistan | All rights reserved
