Senator stress on registration of women voters

ISLAMABAD: Senator Farhatullah Babar Friday stressed for the need for National Emergency Voters Registration Drive, if necessary through legislation, to make national identity cards for all the over 12 million women missing from the voters lists so that they are able to take part in the 2018 elections.

“The national drive should include setting up emergency registration centres, mobile registration vans, incentives by waving registration fee, training staff, opening special women registration centres and providing needed funds to Nadra while at the same time holding it accountable,” he said while speaking at a seminar organised by the National Commission on the Status of Women.

In addition, Babar said a thought should also be given to whether instead of mandatory CNIC, multiple identity documents may be allowed for voting. He called for a way to register as voters the women enlisted in the 2017 census even without possessing the CNIC. “The backlog is piling up daily as in addition to the 12 million, another 3500 women entered into missing list every day as they attained the voter’s age,” he said.

He said if elections are to be held on time next year, women missing form voters lists would have to be provided CNICs in less than 150 days to enable them to vote. He said merely criticising Nadra will not provide any solution. “We also have to empower it to undertake this gigantic task, give it resources and hold it accountable also,” he said.

He said in the first instance, focus should be on launching special drive in those districts where the gender voting gap is the largest. “By doing so, Nadra will not spread itself too thin and gains will be the highest,” he said and proposed that legislation may be made if necessary for launching the national emergency voters registration drive.