With the terms of the national, Sindh and Balochistan assemblies nearing their end in less than two months, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is shifting gears to prepare for the massive upcoming election.
A meeting of the ECP presided over by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja heard from Secretary Omar Hamid Khan regarding the measures and preparations for the impending general election.
Khan mentioned that the procurement and secure storage of paper for essential election materials and ballot papers have been taken care of. Moreover, he added, a preliminary list of polling stations has been drafted. This list will be handed to returning officers immediately after the official notification is released, enabling them to publish it provisionally. Khan explained that after collecting feedback and objections from the voters, the ECP would oversee its final publication in compliance with the law.
As per law, the deadline for voter registration, removal, and verification is July 13. To facilitate this, the ECP has launched an awareness campaign and is collaborating with various institutions, including Nadra, to print and distribute electoral rolls.
In the meeting, the ECP also received a briefing on the execution of local government elections in Punjab and Quetta. The commission was told that the Balochistan government is to issue a notification as per the Balochistan High Court’s order dated December 23, 2022. Under this order, the ECP must supply data on the number of towns, seats, and other information related to Quetta to begin the delimitation process.
The commission was also apprised that the registration of electoral groups in Punjab would conclude on July 17.
