ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi said on Saturday that general elections will be held on time and urged people to ignore rumors regarding possible delay of the polls.
Speaking at the inauguration ceremony of Pakistan’s premier high-tech deep water container port in Karachi, he said the government was striving to ensure smooth conduct of free and fair elections.
“A government of public representatives could address public issues,” he said. “People should ignore rumors (about elections delay) being spread out through media.”
The prime minister also clarified that his party, the ruling Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz, never became part of any undemocratic initiative, nor would it in the future.
The constitution has defined limits of every institution to ensure smooth functioning of the state organs, he said, adding that his party has introduced a model of politics focused at unprecedented public service and the future governments should follow it.
On the other hand, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) is already working hard to complete all the prerequisites to ensure that general elections are held within the time period stipulated in the constitution.
The election commission is bound to hold general elections of National Assembly and all four provincial assemblies within 60 days of their dissolution.
Altaf Ahmad Khan, a spokesman for the ECP, also rubbished the rumors of any delay in the general elections, saying the election commission is working day and night to complete all the prerequisites for elections under the Elections Act 2017.
“There is no reason for any delay in the elections,” he told Arab News. “All the propaganda regarding the elections delay is useless as we are committed to hold elections on time as per the constitution.”
Listing preparations for the elections, he said the process of delimitations of constituencies of the National Assembly and provincial assemblies has been completed while electoral rolls are also being finalized.
Khan said the enlistment of political parties with the ECP was almost complete and all political parties contesting the 2018 general elections were asked to file an application for their desired party symbol from May 15.
About transparency of the polls, he said the ECP had imported ballot paper from the United Kingdom and France that contained special security features such as watermark, and nobody would be able to print duplicate ballot papers.
He said the ECP had also tasked the National Database and Registration Authority to develop a special software that would help scrutinize nomination papers of the candidates with help of other institutions such as State Bank of Pakistan, Federal Board of Revenue and Federal Investigation Agency.
The five-year term of the present government will expire on May 31 and a caretaker setup will be in place on June 1 for the next 60 days to hold general elections.
Under the constitution, Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi and Leader of the Opposition in the National Assembly Khursheed Shah are empowered to mutually nominate a person for the slot of caretaker prime minister.
Khursheed Shah told the media on Friday that a consensus candidate for the caretaker prime minister’s slot had been finalized and his name would be announced on May 15.
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Pakistan PM says elections to be held on time
Pakistan PM says elections to be held on time
- PM says a government of public representatives only could address the public issues
- Election commission has imported ballot paper from UK, France containing special security features
Mali, Burkina say restricting entry for US nationals in reciprocal move
ABIDJAN: Mali and Burkina Faso have announced travel restrictions on American nationals in a tit-for-tat move after the US included both African countries on a no-entry list.
In statements issued separately by both countries’ foreign ministries and seen Wednesday by AFP, they said they were imposing “equivalent measures” on US citizens, after President Donald Trump expanded a travel ban to nearly 40 countries this month, based solely on nationality.
That list included Syrian citizens, as well as Palestinian Authority passport holders, and nationals of some of Africa’s poorest countries including also Niger, Sierra Leone and South Sudan.
The White House said it was banning foreigners who “intend to threaten” Americans.
Burkina Faso’s foreign ministry said in the statement that it was applying “equivalent visa measures” on Americans, while Mali said it was, “with immediate effect,” applying “the same conditions and requirements on American nationals that the American authorities have imposed on Malian citizens entering the United States.”
It voiced its “regret” that the United States had made “such an important decision without the slightest prior consultation.”
The two sub-Saharan countries, both run by military juntas, are members of a confederation that also includes Niger.
Niger has not officially announced any counter-measures to the US travel ban, but the country’s news agency, citing a diplomatic source, said last week that such measures had been decided.
In his December 17 announcement, Trump also imposed partial travel restrictions on citizens of other African countries including the most populous, Nigeria, as well as Ivory Coast and Senegal, which qualified for the football World Cup to be played next year in the United States as well as Canada and Mexico.
In statements issued separately by both countries’ foreign ministries and seen Wednesday by AFP, they said they were imposing “equivalent measures” on US citizens, after President Donald Trump expanded a travel ban to nearly 40 countries this month, based solely on nationality.
That list included Syrian citizens, as well as Palestinian Authority passport holders, and nationals of some of Africa’s poorest countries including also Niger, Sierra Leone and South Sudan.
The White House said it was banning foreigners who “intend to threaten” Americans.
Burkina Faso’s foreign ministry said in the statement that it was applying “equivalent visa measures” on Americans, while Mali said it was, “with immediate effect,” applying “the same conditions and requirements on American nationals that the American authorities have imposed on Malian citizens entering the United States.”
It voiced its “regret” that the United States had made “such an important decision without the slightest prior consultation.”
The two sub-Saharan countries, both run by military juntas, are members of a confederation that also includes Niger.
Niger has not officially announced any counter-measures to the US travel ban, but the country’s news agency, citing a diplomatic source, said last week that such measures had been decided.
In his December 17 announcement, Trump also imposed partial travel restrictions on citizens of other African countries including the most populous, Nigeria, as well as Ivory Coast and Senegal, which qualified for the football World Cup to be played next year in the United States as well as Canada and Mexico.
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