Polling for second phase of LG polls today

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) on Wednesday said that polling for the second phase of local government (LG) elections will be held today (Thursday) in 26 districts of Sindh and Punjab while polling had been postponed in 81 union councils of Sindh and nine in Punjab.
Talking to the media after attending a meeting to finalise the arrangements for the LG elections, ECP Secretary Babar Yaqoob said that the elections in the 81 union councils had been postponed as per the directives of the Supreme Court.
He said that the ECP had finalised all the administrative and security measures to ensure a fair polling process. He said that the elections had been postponed in five municipal committees, 18 town committees and 58 union councils of different cities of Sindh.
He said that the decision to delay the elections was taken in an ECP meeting held under the chairmanship of the chief election commissioner. These constituencies included 24 UCs of the Hyderabad Division, 25 UCs of Mirpurkhas and 32 UCs of Benazirabad. He said that the elections in these union councils and municipal committees would be held after the third phase.
Replying to a question, he said the LG elections in Attock would be held in December. He said the polling staff had been advised to cooperate with the media.
Meanwhile, the district returning officer, Shaheed Benazirabad, said the ECP had stopped elections in the Municipal Committee, Nawabshah, and the town committee, Daur.
The notification in this regard states, “I am directed over telephone by the provincial election commissioner, Sindh, that the ECP has recalled elections in the municipal committee, Nawabshah, and the town committee, Daur, in the light of the Sindh High Court’s order dated November 17, 2015.”
In the second phase of the LG elections, over 20 million voters will exercise their right to franchise in 26 districts of Sindh and Punjab.
Election campaigns for the second phase of the polls in Punjab and Sindh have ended.
According to the ECP, in Punjab, polling will be held in 12 districts: Sargodha, Gujranwala, Sahiwal, Attock, Jhelum, Mianwali, Chiniot, Toba Tek Singh, Hafizabad, Mandi Bahauddin, Sheikhupura and Khanewal.
In Sindh, polling will be held in 14 districts including Hyderabad, Tando Muhammad Khan, Tando Allahyar, Matiari, Dadu, Jamshoro, Badin, Thatta, Sajawal, Shaheed Benazirabad, Noshero Feroz, Mirpurkhas, Umerkot and Tharparkar. Polling in Sanghar has been postponed due to security reasons. The ECP has established a control room for the elections.
Additional Secretary, Admin, Fida Muhammad, and Joint Secretary (LGE) Atta-ur-Rehman would be in-charge of the control room. The ECP has constituted eight teams for receiving complaints on the polling day. The returning officers have been directed to send preliminary results through e-mail to the provincial election commissioners of Punjab and Sindh.
The PPP’s 144 candidates, including 20 chairmen and vice chairmen, have been elected unopposed in the Nawabshah District.
PPP District President Ali Akbar Jamali said that two chairmen and vice chairmen from Taluka Nawabshah, eight chairmen and vice chairmen from eight union councils of Taluka Daur, six chairmen and vice chairmen from six UCs of Taluka Qazi Ahmed, while four chairmen and vice chairmen were elected unopposed from Taluka Sakrand. As many as 10 councillors were elected unopposed from Taluka Nawabshah, 17 from Taluka Sakrand, 30 from Taluka Qazi Ahmed and 46 from Taluka Daur. For the seats of district council, two members from Taluka Sakrand, two members from Taluka Nawabshah, eight from Taluka Daur and seven from Taluka Qazi Ahmed returned unopposed.
The ECP has postponed polling in two union councils of the Khanewal District on the directions of the Lahore High Court.
District Election Commissioner Javed Chattha said that earlier demarcations of UC 115 (Chak 166/10-R) and UC 116 (Chak 170/10-R) had been challenged in the Lahore High Court. He said the court had issued directives to check demarcations but it couldn’t be done so far. Therefore, the elections were postponed in the said union councils until the re-demarcation.
The LG elections in seven union councils of the Attock District have also been put off.
This was stated by the district returning officer, Attock, while talking to the media on Wednesday.
The elections were postponed in union councils Jalwal, Nara, Saghri, Pind Sultani and Mithial of Tehsil Jand. The elections in these union councils would be held in December.