ISLAMABAD: The vote count was underway after Pakistan held by-elections in 21 national and provincial assembly constituencies on Sunday, Pakistani state media reported, amid suspension of mobile phone networks in parts of Punjab and Balochistan provinces.
The by-polls were the first major electoral exercise since the Feb. 8 national election in Pakistan, which were marred by a nationwide mobile network outage and result delays, leading to accusations that the vote was rigged and drawing concern from rights groups and foreign governments.
Polling began at 8am and continued till 5pm for five National Assembly seats, 12 Punjab Assembly seats, and two seats each in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan assemblies. They were left vacant due to postponement of polls in Feb. or were vacated by lawmakers, who won multiple seats.
“The Election Commission of Pakistan has established the Election Monitoring Control Room at its secretariat in Islamabad to monitor the by-elections being held in different parts of the country,” the state-run Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported, adding the control room would remain operational till the culmination of the exercise.
On Saturday, the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA), which regulates Internet in the country, said the decision to keep cellular services suspended in specific districts of Punjab and Balochistan on April 21-22 was taken on the directions of the interior ministry.
“This decision has been taken to safeguard the integrity and security of the electoral process,” the regulator said in a statement.
Reacting to the PTA’s announcement on Saturday, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) opposition party, led by jailed former prime minister Imran Khan, said the suspension of mobile phone services in districts where by-polls were being held was “unconstitutional and illegal.”
“The Internet shutdown is unconstitutional, illegal and shameful, and a plan to rig the results,” it said.
The federal government authorized the deployment of civil armed forces and Pakistan Army to assist the ECP in peaceful conduct of by-polls.
In its code of conduct, the ECP asked troops not to respond on their own to “an apparent irregularity” outside a polling station and bring the matter to the knowledge of the presiding officer for any necessary legal action.
The security forces were also directed not to “interfere in the counting process in any manner” and perform their duty outside the polling stations diligently, so that the counting process could be completed in a peaceful manner.
Vote count underway after polling ends for Pakistan by-polls in 21 constituencies
https://arab.news/n2kw4
Vote count underway after polling ends for Pakistan by-polls in 21 constituencies
- The by-elections were held on seats vacated by candidates or in constituencies where election had been postponed in Feb.
- Polling began at 8am and continued till 5pm, with mobile services suspended in parts of Punjab and Balochistan provinces
Pakistan PM to attend World Economic Forum’s annual meeting in Switzerland next month
- The WEF meeting, scheduled to be held in Davos on Jan. 19-23, will focus on global challenges, public-private dialogue and cooperation
- Government, business, civil society and academia leaders will engage in forward-looking discussions to address these issues, set priorities
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif will travel to Switzerland next month to attend the 56th annual meeting of the World Economic Forum (WEF), Pakistani state media reported on Monday.
The WEF annual meeting, themed as ‘A Spirit of Dialogue,’ will be held from Jan. 19 to Jan. 23 in Davos, where world leaders from government, business, civil society and academia will engage in forward-looking discussions to address global issues and set priorities.
Prime Minister Sharif is expected to interact with global leaders and investors on economic challenges, regional and international issues and various opportunities for cooperation.
On Monday, Deputy PM Ishaq Dar presided over a meeting in Islamabad to oversee preparations for Sharif’s upcoming visit to Switzerland to attend the WEF meeting, the Radio Pakistan broadcaster reported.
“Dar instructed to maximize the engagements with the incoming Heads of States, Governments and senior leadership of economic, business and financial institutions,” the report read.
The WEF meeting program will be structured around key global challenges where public-private dialogue and cooperation, involving all stakeholders, is necessary for progress, according to the WEF website.
In addressing these challenges, growth, resilience and innovation will serve as cross-cutting imperatives, guiding how leaders engage with today’s complexity and pursue tomorrow’s opportunities.
Pakistani foreign ministry officials briefed the deputy PM about preparations for the WEF meeting, according to Radio Pakistan. The participants of Monday’s meeting in Islamabad discussed in detail the bilateral component and media engagements during the visit.
“He [Dar] further stressed that opportunities be explored to foster collaboration with private sector business entities,” the state broadcaster said.
