Govt, opposition lists include four common names

ECP members

Nargis Sethi likely to be one of them

ISLAMABAD: A broad consensus between the government and the Leader of the Opposition Syed Khursheed Shah on four new members of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was apparently reached before they forwarded their respective lists, containing 12 names each, to the parliamentary committee for a decision.

There is a strong possibility that a retired Grade 22 bureaucrat Nargis Sethi, who had served as the principal secretary to Yousuf Raza Gilani when he was the prime minister, and the first-ever woman defence secretary, is likely to be inducted into the ECP as its member from Sindh.

Her name was recommended by the opposition leader, belonging to the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP). All of his opposition colleagues endorsed it. The Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) is also not seemingly opposed to her nomination.

Her husband Saleem Sethi, who retired in Grade 22 in March this year, was later appointed as the chairman of the National Commission for Government Reforms.The opposition leader firmed up his 12 names, three from each province, in consultation with the opposition parties.

Besides, informed circles told The News, the approval of four names from amongst two dozens of recommendations is just a formality by the bipartisan committee as the two sides hammered out an agreement during their intensive consultations as to which person would be taken from which province. All such figures were included in the two lists, meaning that they are said to have four common names, which would be approved by the committee as the ECP members.

Sources said a predominant majority of names recommended by both sides are respectable and reputed. According to them, they suggested persons of good standing.

However, sources refused to divulge these names saying that they would not like to break their oath to disclose them. But it is believed that the names represent a mix of former bureaucrats and retired superior court judges, and technocrats.

The great confidence that Finance Minister Ishaq Dar and Khursheed Shah exuded during a joint presser after their conclusive meeting on the issue of choosing the ECP members last week clearly reflected that there will be a smooth sailing in the committee. They had announced with certainty that the panel would positively take up the 24 names and give consent to four of them on Monday, the last date of the deadline to make these appointments.

Sources acknowledged that even during consultations of the opposition parties, the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) also came out with reasonably good names and so did the PPP. “It was a positive development although it was expected that they would face problems in reaching an accord because everyone of them wanted to push its own names.”

Asked whether PTI Chairman Imran Khan would also accept the decision of the parliamentary forum if his choice was not approved, the sources said it would be the responsibility of his senior trusted colleague, Shah Mehmood Qureshi, who had been part of the hectic discussions with Khursheed Shah.

The opposition leader was told by Qureshi that he has the complete mandate of the PTI chairman, who would go with the findings of the parliamentary panel and would not repeat his policy that he had pursued in the case of Fakhruddin G Ebrahim.

The sources appreciated the efforts of Khursheed Shah to take all the opposition parties on board although he was not required under the Constitution to do so.

As per the Constitution, it is the exclusive power of the leader of house (Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif) and the opposition leader to pick up the ECP members and Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) through consensus, and if they fail to arrive at an agreement, they will refer their respective recommendations to a parliamentary forum for decision.

The 12-member committee, headed by Information Minister Senator Pervez Rashid, was constituted to make these appointments as per the Constitution. The ECP vacancies would be filled up after 45 days during which the electoral body remained dysfunctional resulting in the postponement of the scheduled federal and provincial by-polls and election to certain tiers of the local governments in Sindh.

As the ECP would be completed with the appointment of four members making it fully functional, election to the heads of the local councils in Punjab will also be immediately held as the Punjab government has withdrawn an amendment in the local law, which had been challenged in the Lahore High Court that had issued a stay order to hold the election.

Under the 22nd Constitutional Amendment, retired bureaucrats and technocrats can also be made ECP members and CEC.