Amendment sets qualifications and procedures for appointment of Chief Election Commissioner and ECP members
The Senate on Thursday passed “The Constitution (Twenty-second Amendment) Bill, 2016”. The bill was moved by Minister for Law and Justice Zahid Hamid. The bill was passed unanimously as 71 members voted in favour, while none voted against it.
The amendment, already passed by the National Assembly, envisages qualifications and procedure for appointment of Chief Election Commissioner and members of the Election Commission of Pakistan.
Finance Minister Senator Ishaq Dar said that all the political parties must own this constitutional amendment as it has been drafted through consensus by the 34-member Electoral Reforms Committee. He rejected the impression that it has been imposed by the National Assembly on the Senate reminding that the Reforms Committee also included members from the Upper House. He said the amendment addresses the core issues about the qualification for the Chief Election Commissioner and the members of the Election Commission. He said the non-core issues may be addressed in the broader electoral reforms package.
Law Minister Zahid Hamid said 11 Senators and 23 MNAs in the Electoral Reforms Committee had all given their consent on the amendment.
The constitutional amendment provides that a retired judge of the Supreme Court or a senior bureaucrat or a technocrat of no more than 68 years of age can be considered for appointment as Chief Election Commissioner.
The amendment says that in case there is no consensus between the prime minister and the leader of the opposition over the appointment of the chief election commissioner, then both of them will send separate lists to the Parliamentary Committee for consideration. The Committee will approve the name and its decision will be final.
The amendment also says that a retired judge of the High Court or a senior bureaucrat or a technocrat may be considered for appointment as an Election Commission member. One member of the Commission will be taken from each province. As a onetime exercise, two members of the commission will retire after two and a half years while the other two will retire after the next two and a half years. This ensures that in future there are always two members of the Commission holding their posts, instead of all of them retiring at the same time.