ISLAMABAD: Political parties in Pakistan are preparing for the 2018 general elections in August as the assemblies come to end their constitutional terms in the last week of May, according to Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP).
The five-year constitutional term of the National Assembly and the Punjab Assembly is ending on May 31, while those of the Sindh, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan assemblies are finishing three days earlier, i.e, on May 28.
The National Assembly is expected to complete its constitutional tenure on June 5, requiring elections to be held within 60 days of its dissolution.
Pakistan’s constitution requires the president to nominate the caretaker prime minister after consultation with the prime minister and leader of the opposition.
“As per Article 224A (1), in case the Prime Minister and the Leader of the Opposition in the outgoing National Assembly do not agree on any person to be appointed as the caretaker Prime Minister, within three days of the dissolution of the National Assembly, they shall forward two nominees each to a Committee to be immediately constituted by the Speaker of the National Assembly,” ECP official Haroon Khan told Arab News.
He said the parliamentary committee comprises eight members of the outgoing National Assembly, or the Senate, or both, having equal representation from the Treasury and the Opposition, to be nominated by the prime minister and the leader of the opposition respectively.
“The Committee constituted under clause (1) or (2) [of Article 224] shall finalize the name of the caretaker prime minister or caretaker chief minister, as the case may be, within three days of the referral of the matter to it,” said Haroon.
In case of the Committee’s inability to decide the matter in these three days, “the names of the nominees shall be referred to the Election Commission of Pakistan for a final decision within two days,” he added.
On Friday, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said efforts were being made to install a consensus caretaker setup after the incumbent government completes its tenure, but if the efforts failed the matter would go to the ECP.
However, he feared that given the role of Pakistan People’s Party in the recent elections of the chairman and deputy chairman of Senate, there can be some problems in reaching consensus over the caretaker setup.
“The incumbent prime minister and the chief ministers shall continue to hold office till appointment of the caretaker prime minister and the respective caretaker provincial chief ministers, as the case may be,” Haroon said.
Efforts to form caretaker setup under way as Pakistan gears up for polls
Efforts to form caretaker setup under way as Pakistan gears up for polls
Pakistan’s Mahnoor Omer named among TIME’s ‘Women of the Year’ for 2026
- Omer moved a Pakistani court against the so-called ‘period tax’ in Sept. 2025 which has since sparked a national debate
- Taxes on sanitary pads in Pakistan can add up to 40 percent to retail price, UNICEF says only around 12 percent women use such products
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani women’s rights activist Mahnoor Omer, who fought against taxes on menstrual products, has been named among the TIME magazine’s ‘Women of the Year’ for 2026.
Omer’s efforts have been recognized alongside 16 activists, artists, athletes and businesswomen in the TIME’s Women of the Year 2026 list, including Olympic gold medalist Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone and Oscar-nominated filmmaker Chloe Zhao.
Dissatisfied with the efforts to educate Pakistani girls about sexual violence, Omer founded the Noor Foundation at the age of 14 and held her own workshops with village girls about everything from climate change to menstruation, according to the TIME magazine.
Two years later, a conversation with a domestic worker about the price of pads made her realize that not everyone could afford these essentials. She moved a court against the so-called “period tax” in Sept. 2025 and the case has sparked a national debate on the subject, considered a taboo by many in Pakistan, since its first hearing late last year.
“A decade and one law degree after her interest in activism was sparked, Omer, now 25, is putting her passion and expertise to work in the name of gender equity,” TIME wrote about Omer on its website.
Taxes imposed on sanitary products in Pakistan can add up to 40 percent to the retail price. UNICEF estimates just 12 percent of women in the country use commercially produced pads or tampons. The alternative, using cloth, risks health impacts including rashes and infections, and can make it impossible for girls to attend school while menstruating.
Omer’s suit, which awaits the government response, has sparked a national discussion. She says she spoke about menstruation to her father and male cousins, who thanked her for standing up for their daughters.
The 25-year-old, who is currently enrolled in a master’s degree in gender, peace, and security at the London School of Economics, sees this case as just the first of many.
“I’m not free until every woman is free,” she was quoted as saying by TIME. “I want to leave no stones unturned in terms of what I can do with the next few decades, as a lawyer for the women in my country and gender minorities in general.”
