- Justice Raza calls upon police and military leadership to perform duties as per constitution
A high-level meeting of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Justice (r) Sardar Muhammad Raza, on Monday reviewed arrangements for by-polls in Punjab, scheduled on October 11.
The meeting decided to strictly monitor the by-polls with the establishment of control rooms in the provincial election commission and Islamabad.
CEC Raza will monitor the by-elections. Stressing on the teamwork, he said, “ECP alone cannot hold transparent elections without the assistance of civil and military institutions.”
The CEC called upon police and military leadership to perform their duties as per the constitution.
“Government officials are servant of the general public,” he said and added, “they should not have affiliation with any person or party.”
While briefing the media after the meeting, ECP Secretary Babar Yaqub said that the ECP would ensure holding of free, fair, and transparent by-elections and local government elections in Punjab.
The secretary said the Punjab Police chief has assured that the police perform their duties neutrally during the elections.
He said that during the meeting, the District Returning Officers, particularly of Faisalabad, Okara, and Gujrat, requested for provision of Pakistan Army or Punjab Rangers personnel to hold local government elections in their respective districts. He said that a decision in this regard would be taken by the ECP in its next meeting.
He said that Pak Army personnel would be deputed inside and outside the polling stations during the NA-122 by-elections in Lahore. He said that the Pak Army has asked for the provision of CCTV cameras at the polling stations.
The secretary said that the ballot paper for NA-122 Lahore by-elections is being printed, and is in progress under the supervision of the Pak Army personnel.