Senate elections: ECP announces polling on 4 FATA seats on Mar 20
The polling was suspended due to presidential ordinance passed few hours before elections.
ISLAMABAD (Dunya News) – Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has announced to hold Senate elections on four vacant seats of Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) on March 20, Dunya News reported on Monday.
According to the sources, a summary of FATA elections has been dispatched to Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Sardar Raza Khan stating to conduct elections on March 20.
The administration has revoked the presidential ordinance and ordered to conduct polling for Senate elections in FATA as per old ECP s procedure.
On the other hand, ECP has deployed as many as 50 returning officers in Cantonment Board for by-elections.
Earlier during Senate elections, anew presidential ordinance pertaining to the senate elections was passed in FATA; just a few hours before the elections were to commence.
According to the ordinance, each Member of National Assembly (MNA) would be able to cast a singular vote. Hence, the notification rendered the unification of 6 members ineffective. Prior to the notification, six of eleven MNAs could collectively elect four senators that shrunk the significance of the votes of other six members.
Shahabuddin, member of the government, had sternly opposed this practice and had demanded to remodel the relevant rule. He further stated that six of the members, who have grouped together, if not hampered, would elect members through horse-trading.
An amendment in the regulations was made, for the members from FATA, through a presidential ordinance in 2002.
According to the sources, six independent candidates out of the total 11 members from FATA had formed a group in the National Assembly that nullified the importance of the votes of other five members including 3 members from Pakistan Muslim League – Nawaz (PML-N), one from Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) and one from Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam (JUI-F).
CEC met Members of National Assembly (MNAs) from FATA again and advised them to consult the court.
He explained that they do not possess the authority to revoke the ordinance.
