Think outside the box

The outdated ECP system has disenfranchised millions of voters on the basis of a change of address. These include those whose votes are listed at their permanent addresses, even though they have been living in a different city for a long time. The ECP has been unable to devise a simple mechanism to change their addresses. The commission could learn from other countries where such a change can be made through cellphones or the internet.

The ECP has failed to use the Nadra-linked biometric voting machines, which have already been a norm in many countries for the last two decades. Its archaic processes are vulnerable to errors, such as multiple voting, voting on another person’s card, and even the practice of casting ballots on behalf of those who are dead. It is time the ECP took steps to reform its processes and think outside the wooden ballot box.

Naeem Sadiq

Karachi