The Supreme Court has rejected the complex draft from the Election Commission of Pakistan about giving right of vote to overseas Pakistanis and asked the ECP to prepare simple draft, in this regard.
The three-member bench led by Chief Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry resumed hearing in the case on Monday, in which the officials of the Election Commission presented the proposed draft for giving right to vote to overseas Pakistanis.
After going through the draft, the CJP said according to the draft, a lot of time would be required to implement it and it was very complicated, so an easy draft may be prepared so that overseas Pakistanis may be given the right of franchise as early as possible.
The SC ordered the ECP to include those Pakistanis who were living abroad in the electoral process and adjourned the proceedings until April 24.
Good Governance Forum had recommended to the SC and the ECP more than a month ago to use the Online Voting System at an estimated cost of Rs 50 million as compared to Rs 150 million cost of the NADRA's proposed e-Voting System.
Good Governance Forum's Online Voting System would enable the overseas Pakistani voters to cast their votes right from their PCs in their offices and homes from any part of the world whereas the NADRA's e-Voting System required the voters to come to the polling stations at the Pakistan Embassies and Consulates and, that too, in only 10 countries.
Good Governance Forum's Online Voting System is web-based and as secure as the Online Banking System any where in the world.
Mumtaz A. Piracha
Founder/Chairman
Good Governance Forum
Pakistan
AOA Mr. Piracha,
Did you get any response from SC/ECP of your recommendations? Rs. 50 m is much better proice than Nadra. Please keep me posted if overseas Pakistan should be able to vote. Thanks
Overseas Pakistanies must be given right to vote, it would be great injustice with them if right isn’t given
Secondly easiest way is online voting system, it’s far easier and cheaper and safe
CJ please some sort of orders for the online voting
With a lot if thanks
Postal ballot papers to be sent Wednesday
13th general election News 2013-04-23 16:08
PUTRAJAYA, April 23 (Bernama) — All ballot papers for postal voters overseas and absentee voters will be sent tomorrow.
Election Commission (EC) deputy chairman Datuk Wan Ahmad Wan Omar said the papers would be sent to the offices of 103 Malaysian missions abroad.
"The EC gives an assurance that the process of sending and receiving the ballot envelopes is safe and overseas voters need not worry," he told reporters here today.
Polling for overseas voters will be held simultaneously on Sunday from 9am to 8pm in London, United Kingdom, and Melbourne, Australia, and from 9am to 6pm the same day at other Malaysian missions.
Wan Ahmad advised the voters to cast their votes at the centres where the ballot envelopes were given out to avoid problems.
"Everything is available, the officer responsible, witness, ballot booth, equipment, and ballot papers which have been marked can immediately be put into the sacks for postal votes," he said.
He said voters who wanted to take the ballot papers home would have to send the papers themselves and the EC would not be held responsible if the ballots did not arrive at the offices of the respective returning officers (RO) before 5pm on polling day on May 5.
All diplomatic bags containing the ballots were expected to reach Malaysian shores by April 29 at the earliest and would be sent directly to the EC offices nationwide before distribution to the RO offices.
A total of 6,360 overseas voters and 2,900 absentee voters are expected to cast their votes in the election.
Meanwhile, in SEREMBAN, EC chairman Tan Sri Abdul Aziz Mohd Yusof said the biggest number of postal voters resided in Australia, followed by United Kingdom and China.
He said the process of putting the ballots into envelopes to be sent back to Malaysia would be done in a transparent manner under the scrutiny of party agents.
He added that early voting by police and armed forces personnel would be held on April 30.
"The ballots for early voting must be opened at 4pm on May 5 in front of party agents. If there are too many we will open early but it must be done before party agents and observers, both domestic and international," he said.
IF MALAYSIA CAN SEND POSTAL BALLOT TO 103 EMBASSIES FOR 6000 ABSENTE VOTERS THAN WHY WE CANT DO IT????????????
Because the statue quo don't want this to happen. They know that PTI will win with a massive margin…
Much is being said regarding Overseas Pakistanis Voting. Let me start with the solution that NADRA offered:
1) According to NADRA the software was developed in 48 hours.
2) What tests were carried out on this software for it's authentication?
3) Has it been field tested? What is the credibility of this software?
4) I believe it was done only to show to the Supreme Court, knowing that it would not be implemented in the real life.
5) Only in Middle East there are 3million voters. How is it possible for that large number to come to the polling station to cast the votes?
6) What is the computer literacy of these Pakistanis to vote on line?
7) How many transactions would be there for each on line vote?
8) What is the credibility of Internet Communication on that particular day? We have seen in the past that the communication breaks down for different reasons like damaged/faulty marine cable. What would be the solution for that?
9) Nadra suggested on line biometric authentication of the voter. There is always a chance that the secrecy of the ballot casting is compromised.
10) Have the Stakeholders been taken on board? I believe it is not done till to date.
11) For the confidence of the stakeholders the system is to be made transparent to all concerned.
12) Election Commission does not have enough time to get the solution implemented if they have one at all.
13) At the end of the day it is ECP that has to be responsible for the outcome of the exercise.
14) The idea of sending postal ballots is also not workable. For Malaysians it is only 6,000 but for Pakistanis the number is 4 millions. You again need time and the logistics to cater for the same.
15) Having said all that i didn't mean that it is not do able. It definitely can be done but we need to do it properly and not become a laughing stock for the world as we do become in most of the cases by proceeding and then withdrawing in the end.
16) If ECP was at all serious it would have started working on this issue years back when Supreme Court gave directions in the first instance.
GOD HELP US ALL.
People, stop saying you need the right to vote. You have the right to vote. The problem is that its not easy for us to vote from outside the country because there is no method for it unless we go back to Pakistan. Stop saying you need the right to vote and start saying you need the ability to vote from outside the country
IF ELECTION COMMISION PUT BALLOT PAPERS ON WEBSITE,,,PAKISTANIS CAN VOTE AND GIVE THIS IN RESPECTIVE EMBASSY BEFORE 08 MAY, 2013,,,,EMBASSY CAN SEND ALL BALLOT PAPERS BY SPECIAL DIPLOMATIC BAG FOR ELECTION COMMISION ,,,,,BY A FIRST AVAILABLE FLIGHT,,,,,,,ELECTION COMMISION CAN ADD OVERSEAS VOTES IN ITS RESULTS,,,,,WHAT I FEEL THAT ECP IS WORKING FOR PML(N)
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