Govt attacks ECP after impasse on voting machines

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) was once again in the crosshairs of the government on Friday, as ministers alleged the partisanship of its chief after its members walked out of a Senate panel meeting on electronic voting machines (EVMs) following serious allegations made by Railways minister Azam Swati.

The Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) government and the election regulator had previously butted heads on the results of the Daska by-election in February, which the ECP declared null and void after allegations of rigging. The PTI opposed the decision and even then questioned the body’s loyalties. The ECP ordered re-polling in the entire constituency, which the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) went on to win.

This time, the ECP raised a number of objections — 37 — on the government’s EVMs, which the former is pushing as a solution to rigging in elections. The government wants to use the EVMs in the next general elections, but the ECP said, in a report submitted to the Senate’s Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs three days ago, that the machines — which the science and technology ministry has developed — is “tampering-prone” and its software could be easily altered.

In a press conference, information minister Fawad Chaudhry, Swati and Parliamentary Affairs Minister Babar Awan had some choice words for the ECP, with Chaudhry saying it appeared the ECP had “become the headquarters for opposition parties and the chief election commissioner is acting as their mouthpiece”.

“The chief election commissioner — must have close contact, naturally — has had contacts with Nawaz Sharif etc,” said Chaudhry, adding that his “sympathies may even lie with Sharif” but the government has no problem with that. “However, the election commissioner — or any other body — has to obey Parliament,” he added.

He said the chief election commissioner should “either take a look at his behaviour or join politics”. “You better not become a tool used by small political parties,” he said.

According to Radio Pakistan, Chaudhry said in the presser that the government wants to use technology to ensure transparent and credible elections in the country. He added that the opposition, especially the PML-N, is “deliberately trying to make the constitutional amendment regarding use of EVMs controversial”.

He said the election commission is raising unnecessary objections on government’s proposals to ensure transparency in the electoral process. Chaudhry added that whenever the opposition loses in elections, it starts crying foul about rigging.

On the other hand, Senator Babar Awan said the bill on electoral reforms was passed in the National Assembly after eight months but the opposition did not present a single suggestion throughout this period. “The opposition has become the enemy of electoral reforms as they want to maintain the status quo,” Awan said. Moreover, the bill had to be passed by the Senate in 90 days but it was rejected only a few hours before the conclusion of the stipulated 90-day period, he said. “It is for the first time in history that the Senate committee bulldozed the government’s legislation,” he claimed. “We have now decided to take the bill to the joint session of the Parliament on September 13 and will convene a National Assembly session a day after that.” Awan said the government will soon complete the legislation under a Supreme Court order.

Earlier in the day, the Senate Standing Committee on Parliamentary Affairs met, where the debate on the usage of EVMs for the next general elections turned hostile, according to Geo News.

Awan said the government will not decide which machine will be used for voting. “This will be decided by the election commission,” he said. “The Ministry of Parliamentary Affairs wrote a letter to the ECP, asking whether it needed a budget.”

Awan said the ministry had written to the ECP, asking whether it needed a budget, security or storage to hold the elections. “The ECP did not respond to the letter,” he lamented.

It was then that a livid Azam Swati accused the ECP of taking money from companies that make electronic voting machines, said a source present in the meeting. The opposition senators said Swati cannot accuse a constitutional body of taking bribes, and asked the senator to provide proof to back his claim.

Swati then claimed that such institutions conduct all elections through rigging and should be burned down. At this, the ECP officials walked out in protest.

Swati’s remarks were swiftly condemned by PML-N president Shahbaz Sharif. In a series of tweets on PML-N’s official handle, Leader of the Opposition condemned the “government threats” in the Senate Parliamentary Affairs Committee meeting.

“The government has no arguments in EVM’s (favour), only threats. The government has resorted to “threatening the election (commission)” after the idea of electronic voting machines was rejected.

“It has been proved that the government has no answer to the technical questions raised on the EVMs. The ECP has raised concrete and clear technical, technical and legal objections to the EVMs, pointing out transparency issues to which the government has no answer.

“Legislation was first bulldozed in Parliament and today the Election Commission representatives had to walk out because of the government’s attitude. Talking about setting fire to the institutions and going to hell is anti-state attitude.” He said it the attitude is “terrorist” and “highly reprehensible”

He said instead of responding to the objections of the members of the committee and the election commission on the EVMs, “intimidation is a special way of the PTI and its leadership”.