ECP in jitters

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ISLAMABAD – Election Commission of Pakistan is in the grip of internal unrest after the unexpected move of secretary to go for a long leave right before his retirement.
Work on projects initiated by the outgoing secretary, Ishtiak Ahmed, who on Tuesday applied leave prior to retirement (LPR), reportedly over his differences with Chief Election Commissioner Justice (retd) Hamid Ali Mirza on various official issues have reached a standstill. A source in ECP said that a group of employees have decided to hold meeting with chief election commissioner to request him to play his role in bringing Ishtiak Ahmed back to his seat. “Some are working as mediators between the two,” the source added.
It may be recalled here that Ishtiak Ahmed had opposed CEC idea to postpone (NA 172) scheduled by-election while he also showed his serious concerns on Saturday when CEC announced for postponement of by-election for KP provincial assembly seat in Tank. The polls were scheduled for February 28 but were re-scheduled for the fourth time and will now take place in the third week of March. The outgoing secretary had been laying stress on the independent status of ECP and on various occasions he said that ECP was a constitutional body and not subordinate to any ministry. On Saturday over his reported differences with CEC, Ishtiak Ahmed applied for leave prior to retirement that is due in November, 2011.
The source said the secretary had signed letters which were sent to the Senate and National Assembly Secretariats, pointing out that the officers of the ECP cannot be summoned by parliamentary bodies. It was during his term in office that the Election Commission started work on developing error-free computerised electoral rolls and decided in principle to introduce electronic voting machines (EVMs) to make the results of future elections credible, as part of a comprehensive five year strategic plan.
The sources said summaries seeking amendments in various laws have also been moved by the Election Commission to the Law Ministry under his guidance. He also requested to Finance Division for releasing Rs 3 billion for holding local body election. Similarly, he held two consultation meetings with political parties. Despite repeated attempts the nominated spokesman of ECP, Afzal Khan, could not be approached for his comments.