Pakistan’s political parties urge election regulator to announce date for polls

ISLAMABAD: Various Pakistani political parties on Wednesday urged the country’s election regulator to announce the date for upcoming polls, and ensure a “level-playing field” is provided to all contestants taking part in the exercise as Pakistan heads toward general elections.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) announced in September that it would conduct polls in the last week of January. Elections were supposed to be held in the country in November, 90 days after the previous government dissolved assemblies in August. However, the election commission said it needed more time to redraw constituencies following the results of the latest population census.
Representatives of Pakistan’s major political parties held an hours-long meeting with ECP officials on Wednesday to finalize a code of conduct for parties to abide by during the polls. Members of the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI), Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N), Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP), Jamaat-e-Islami (JI) and the Awami National Party (ANP) attended the meeting.
“We have demanded the election commission announce a date for polls,” senior ANP leader Mian Iftikhar Hussain told media after the meeting. “There are still doubts about elections, the election commission has yet to fix a specific date for polls.”
JI leader Farid Paracha suggested the ECP should conduct polls in December, urging it to wrap up the process of delimiting constituencies as early as possible. “It is the responsibility of the election commission to hold free and fair elections,” he said.
Khan’s PTI party, which had a falling out with Pakistan’s powerful military, has voiced fears the army and ECP would resort to unfair means in the upcoming elections to rig elections in favor of his political opponents. The military and ECP have denied the allegations while Caretaker Prime Minister Anwaar-ul-Haq Kakar has assured that all parties would be provided a “level-playing field” when polls are held.
“We have shared our reservations over the level-playing field (issue) with the election commission,” PTI member Barrister Ali Zafar said. “The ECP has noted our points and ensured they will address it.”
PPP leader Nayyar Hussain Bokhari said the ECP had assured political parties that their recommendations would be included in the final code of conduct. “The chief election commissioner has assured to hold the elections in time,” he said.
According to the draft code of conduct, political parties, contestants, and election agents “shall not propagate any opinion, or act in any manner prejudicial to the ideology of Pakistan, or the sovereignty, integrity or security of Pakistan, or morality or public order, or the integrity or independence of the judiciary of Pakistan, or which defames or brings into ridicule any Government institution including the judiciary and the Armed Forces of Pakistan.”
The ECP’s code of conduct makes it mandatory for all parties to follow it for the “smooth conduct” of elections and the maintenance of public order. It also prohibits “maligning” the Election Commission.
Another clause bans billboards, wall chalking, and the use of panaflexes of any size. Violations would be treated as an illegal practice, according to the code.
The ECP said it had discussed various suggestions by political parties during the meeting and promised to include the amendments in the final code of conduct.
“The election commission will ensure strict implementation of the code of conduct during the general elections to hold free and fair elections,” the ECP said in a statement.