Zubair Qureshi
The independent electoral watchdog, Free and Fair Election Network (FAFEN) has urged the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) to publish the decisions of the Returning Officers (ROs) regarding objections to nomination of candidates and their consequent rejections on its website.
This will contribute to a more informed discourse and strengthen electoral transparency, the electoral watchdog has urged the ECP in a statement on Monday.
FAFEN’s statement has come at a time when reportedly, more than 2,500 candidates of the Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaf (PTI) across the country stand disqualified by the Returning Officers. These candidates’ nomination papers have been rejected by the respective ROs on one ground or the other. In Islamabad alone, former Advocate General of Islamabad NiazullahNiazi, Chaudhry Ashraf Gujjar, ShoaibShaheen, Aamir Mughal, SibtainKazmi and IlyasMehrban are some of the aspirant candidates of the PTI whose nomination papers have been rejected by the ROs of the NA-46, 47 and 48. These candidates are now waiting for the ROs’ decisions in order to challenge them in the tribunals.
According to the FAFEN statement, the Section 62 (11) of the Elections Act, 2017 requires the ROs to endorse their decision on each nomination paper, either accepting or rejecting it, and in the case of rejection or objection to acceptance, record brief reasons for their decisions.
Although the Elections Act, 2017 does not contain any specific provisions that warrant publication of such decisions, FAFEN says it believed that the Section 4(3) of the Act empowered the commission with expansive authority to undertake any measures necessary to fulfill its constitutional mandate of conducting elections honestly, justly, fairly, and in accordance with the law, while safeguarding against corrupt practices. The Commission may invoke this authority to upload such decisions on its website, which will also help quell any disinformation and misinformation on the matter.
According to the ECP statistics, the ROs have rejected nomination papers of around 12.4 percent candidates for the upcoming General Elections during the scrutiny process, which is slightly higher than General Elections (GE) 2018, but lower than GE-2013. In the General Elections of 2018 and 2013, 10.4 percent and 14.6 percent of nomination papers were rejected during the scrutiny process, respectively.
By sharing ROs’ decisions, the ECP will empower citizens to comprehend the reasons behind these decisions, and encourage informed opinions about the electoral process. This measure will not only reinforce the transparency of the electoral process, but also serve as a safeguard to its credibility against the proliferation of misinformation and disinformation that often stems from incomplete information, said the statement.
