[🇵🇰] Pakistan General Elections -- 2024

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The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) concluded on Saturday all preparations for the upcoming general elections set to take place on February 8 (Thursday).

Over 120 million registered voters are poised to exercise their democratic right by casting votes for the national and four provincial assemblies.

The ECP has established a network of 90,675 polling stations spanning across all four provinces. Among these, 41,403 are combined polling stations, while 25,320 cater specifically to male voters, and 23,952 are designated for female voters.

A diverse pool of candidates, totalling 5,121, are vying for seats in the National Assembly. This includes 4,807 male candidates, 312 female candidates, and two transgender candidates.

The upcoming elections will take place for 266 general seats in the National Assembly and 593 general seats across the four provincial assemblies.

ECP finalises poll staff’s training

Additionally preparations for the upcoming general elections in Rawalpindi have reached a significant milestone with the training of 26,150 selected polling staff.

In a directive from the district returning officer, it has been emphasised that telephone and internet connections be promptly installed at the 2,671 designated polling stations across Rawalpindi. School heads have been instructed to coordinate with Pakistan Telecommunication Company Limited (PTCL) officials for immediate meetings to ensure swift installations.

By February 6, all polling stations are expected to have operational official telephone lines and internet connections, with heads reporting relevant details to the Election Commission of Pakistan on February 7.

District Returning Officer (DRO) Hasan Waqar Cheema shared that a total of 2,671 presiding officers, 13,872 assistant presiding officers, 6,936 polling officers, and 2,672 naib qasids have been appointed for the elections, covering 2,671 polling stations and 6,936 polling booths in Rawalpindi.

To facilitate the distribution of polling boxes and stationery, all returning officers are summoned to the offices of presiding and polling officers at 10am on February 7.

 

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ECP disqualifies Shah Mahmood Qureshi for 5 years following cipher conviction​

The Election Commission of Pakistan has disqualified PTI leader Shah Mahmood Qureshi for five years after his conviction in the cipher case.

In a notification issued today, a copy of which is available with Dawn.com, the commission barred him from the upcoming February 8 general elections as well as “any subsequent elections for a period of five years”.

It added that he was disqualified under Article 63(1h) of the Constitution, read with Section 232 of the Elections Act, 2017.

 

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Jahangir Tareen — looking to fulfil the promise of ‘Naya Pakistan’?​

During his election campaign, Tareen has vowed to fulfil the promise of introducing ‘Naya Pakistan’.

 

[ghazi]

Jahangir Tareen — looking to fulfil the promise of ‘Naya Pakistan’?​

During his election campaign, Tareen has vowed to fulfil the promise of introducing ‘Naya Pakistan’.

View attachment 1969

He should also wear this..
Discount for him......................

 

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KARACHI: Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) on Saturday called out the MQM and PPP for their electoral plans through “chaos” in the metropolis in a bid to gain “political mileage”, saying that it is crucial on the election stage.

Addressing a press conference at Idara Noor-e-Haq Hafiz Naeemur Rehman, the JI Karachi Chief told reporters that “the JI stands pivotal in making of the government in Sindh and the center.”

He vowed that his party will stick to the Karachi Declaration for the progress and development of Karachi and elsewhere in Sindh, saying that after being elected to power, the JI will introduce healthcare cards for the citizens.

 

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ECP has power to take back electoral symbols from political parties, rules LHC​

• Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan issued an 18-page verdict

NNI
February 4, 2024

LAHORE: The Lahore High Court (LHC) on Saturday ruled that the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) hhe power to take back electoral symbol from political parties.

The LHC issued a written judgement dismissing the petition filed against ECP’s power to take back election symbols from political parties. Justice Shahid Bilal Hassan issued an 18-page verdict.

The court ruled that Section 215 of the Election Act 2017 was not against the Constitution. The court further said Election Act 2017’s Section 215 was not against Constitution in light of Articles 9, 14, 17 and others.

 

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ECP completes printing of 260m ballot papers for all constituencies​

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has successfully completed printing of 260 million ballot papers for all constituencies in the country, state-run Radio Pakistan reported.

According to the ECP spokesman, National Assembly ballots are printed on green paper while those for the provincial assembly are printed on white paper.

 

[ghazi]

Pakistan’s electoral system — an illusion of true representation​

Winning parties often mirror only a fraction of registered voters, leaving the fate of the majority hanging in the balance. Urgent reforms, including compulsory voting, are required to restore true democracy and represent the will of the people.

Javed Jabbar
February 5, 2024
The brazen tactics — by the triumvirate of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), the caretaker federal and provincial governments Punjab in particular and the judiciary (with only some exceptions), backed by the euphemism known as the establishment — are in full public view for anyone who wants to see.

Consequently, a major political party, PTI, is being prevented from formal participation, while its leader, a former prime minister has been convicted in three different cases over the last one week alone. This is only one reason why the upcoming polls will be yet another non-representative expression of the Pakistani people’s political views. At the same time, I would love to be proved wrong.

At the outset, let this be noted: this writer is not a member of the PTI. In fact, on several instances, I have completely disagreed with the PTI’s decisions and policies. Yet, the way in which major political parties and other institutions have acted against the PTI, just before April 2022 and after, violates irreducible norms of fairness, decency, and impartiality.

Notwithstanding the bizarre, reprehensible actions of some elements on May 9, 2023 — still not independently investigated and verified — the victimisation of PTI, as also the unrelated, yet contextually pertinent disregard for the ongoing protests in Balochistan and Gilgit-Baltistan are sources of profound unease, be they directly or indirectly related to the subject of this reflection.

Non-representative polls​

Notwithstanding the above, one of the principal reasons for the persistent anomaly of electoral systems and results over the last 53 years is that in six out of 11 general elections, the average voter turnout has stood at around 45 per cent. This means that more than half of the eligible voters in the country never recorded their preferences.

Meanwhile, in the five other elections, though the turnout was over 50pc, it never reached a two-third majority or more — a reasonably representative, though not complete portrait of reality.

In this writer’s view, the minimal turnout to validate an election should be at least 75pc, which is equivalent to the margin required to make a constitutional amendment in most democracies.

In other South Asian countries, on average in the recent past, though just two countries’ turnouts have reached over 75pc, only Afghanistan with 35-40pc was lower than Pakistan. Sri Lanka and the Maldives stood at 78pc, with Nepal at 69pc, and India and Bhutan at 66pc. Even Iran in West Asia managed 60pc.

Various factors shape voter turnout, the leading one being faith in the integrity of the electoral system followed by convenient access to polling stations (to be fair to Pakistan, one estimate claims that the average voter — the majority — can reach their respective polling station in about 10 minutes from their place of residence).

Other factors include conditions of law and order in and around polling locations, sheer apathy or lack of confidence in available choices, prejudice against women casting votes, and many more. All of these, collectively or individually, have contributed to Pakistan’s low voter turnout rates.

Pakistan’s electoral system — an illusion of true representation

Winning parties often mirror only a fraction of registered voters, leaving the fate of the majority hanging in the balance. Urgent reforms, including compulsory voting, are required to restore true democracy and represent the will of the people.

www.dawn.com

 

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Pakistan’s general elections are scheduled for February 8, and for some it will be their first time casting a vote. For our readers, Business Recorder is breaking down the steps in order to make the exercise easier and simpler.

Here are a few things to consider before casting your ballot.

To prevent confusion on election day, it is wise to find out where you will cast your ballot in advance.

The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has introduced a text message service that enables you to find out your constituency in order to address this.

Text your National Identity Card (NIC) number to 8300, making sure to include all digits without spaces or dashes.

You will receive the block code, serial number, and name of the electoral region once you have mailed in your CNIC.

Read the complete details here

Bringing your CNIC to the polling place is essential. Even if you bring photocopies and other documents, you will not be allowed inside.

Please reconsider if you were about to snap a picture or a selfie while voting. Bringing a cellphone is not permitted at all. Leave your phone at home or in a secure location.

After leaving the polling place, however, you can snap a photo of your thumb that has the specific ink applied to it.

Voting will take place from 8:00 am to 6:00pm. To avoid a long queue, try to arrive early on during the day.

Wait for your time in the queue, and the presiding officer will verify that your name and electoral number are listed.

After calling it out, the officer will mark it off the list to let you know that you have been given two ballots.

If you forget to look for the presiding officer’s signature and stamp on the back of both papers, your vote won’t be accepted.

There will be two ballots provided to you. The white voting paper is for the provincial parliament; the green ballot paper is for the national assembly.

After that, the presiding officer will imprint your thumb impression on the electoral rolls using a unique, non-erasable ink. This will be done to demonstrate that you’ve used your right to vote.

This portion of the ballot paper will be retained by the presiding officers for their records.

Make sure the ballot papers have:

• ECP’s watermark
• Official nine-matrix seal
• Not a paper or anything else attached to it
• Does not have stamps on more than one candidate’s election symbols

After that, you’ll be led to a polling place. Verify that no one else is present or trying to get you to cast a vote for a certain entity.

Make sure the ink is dry before properly folding the ballot papers once you have stamped both of them.

Proceed to the voting booths and insert the green ballot paper into the green-topped box and the white ballot paper into the white-topped box.

 

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Bilawal vows to change Karachi’s fortune in five years if PPP elected​

PPP chairman says city will be given representation it deserves in Sindh cabinet

News Desk
February 05, 2024

PPP Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari addressing a rally in Karachi on February 5, 2024. PHOTO: PPP MEDIA CELL

Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Monday stated that if the people of Karachi elected PPP candidates from at least 20 National Assembly seats, the city’s landscape will change within five years.

The Pakistan’s financial capital 22 and 47 national and provincial assembly seats,