The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), while taking notice of the allegations regarding buying and selling of votes in the recently held Senate elections, has contacted PTI MPA from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa Abdus Salam Afridi and sought evidence from him.
Abdu Salam Afridi said during the Senate elections he had been contacted by a rival party for buying his vote and that he could also submit proof in this regard. The KP lawmaker said the ECP had asked him, through WhatsApp, to immediately hand over the evidence he has regarding the buying of votes. “I have a record of the WhatsApp chat, and will provide evidence to the Election Commission,” he said.
The ECP in its notice said that the MPA has been asked to provide evidence of the offer made to him for selling out his vote. “Abdus Salam Afridi should appear before the vigilance committee along with the evidence,” it said.
Afridi confirmed that he had received the ECP notice on WhatsApp and its hard copy will arrive on Monday. He vowed to provide all evidence to the ECP. “I have record of WhatsApp chat and audio messages which I will hand over to the ECP,” he said, adding that he will forward the evidence to the ECP but taking action against those involved is the duty of the commission.
The move by the ECP looks to be too late now as it has already ignored the evidence available in the shape of audios and videos leaked ahead of the Senate elections and instead ruled that the voting process was ‘fair and transparent’.
