Appointment of Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) members has become a hot issue in Pakistan’s politics as there is still a deadlock between opposition and government on this matter. However, Justice retired Altaf Ibrahim Qureshi has taken oath as the acting Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) as Sardar Raza retired on Thursday (Dec 5) after completing his term of five year.
ECP Becomes Dysfunctional
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) became non-functional with the retirement of Chief Election Commissioner while the appointments of the ECP from members Sindh and Balochistan have not been finalized yet. According to sources, three out of five members are required to keep the Election Commission functional. On the other hand, Parliamentary Committee for appointment of Chief Election Commissioner ECP members from Sindh and Balochistan is scheduled to meet on December 9.
Earlier, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Thursday (Dec 5) proposed three names for the appointment of the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC). The premier has proposed the names of Babar Yaqoob, Fazal Abbas Maken, Arif Khan. Three of the names suggested by the Prime Minister are former bureaucrats.
It’s worth mentioning here that, the Islamabad High Court (IHC) has given government a deadline of ten days for the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) appointments. The IHC Chief Justice Athar Minallah conducted the hearing against the appointment of two members of ECP.
