PSP chief asks govt to refrain from imposing unilateral electoral reforms

Pak Sarzameen Party (PSP) Chairman Syed Mustafa Kamal on Saturday said the federal government must refrain from imposing unilateral electoral reforms.

“The process of unilateral implementation of electoral reforms by the PTI-led federal government will not only be considered as worst pre-poll rigging but also the election results will remain controversial,” Kamal said, addressing a group of residents of Gulistan-e-Jauhar.

He opined that the federal government should not only discuss reforms with all the political parties inside and outside Parliament but also introduce electoral reforms through unanimous consensus of all the stakeholders. “Unless all the political parties and the people of Pakistan are satisfied, reforms mean nothing because the people are the biggest stakeholders in the electoral process,” he remarked.

The PSP chief said people across the country had lost faith in the entire electoral process and a majority saw the voting process as a complete waste of time and energy. “It is imperative to restore the confidence of the voters through reforms. Without biometric verification, the government's proposed electronic voting machines are nothing more than vote counting machines,” he maintained.

He said that without biometric verification of voters, electric machines would open up another avenue of fraudulent elections. The PSP rejected selection method under electronic machines without biometric verification, Kamal said. “It is impossible to hold transparent elections without an independent, autonomous and impartial Election Commission.”

He termed the electoral reforms the most important national issue. The nation has been waiting for free and fair elections for 70 years, he remarked. “If this golden opportunity in 70 years fell prey to dirty politics, political angling and political engineering, our future generations will have to suffer the consequences which would be dire and far-reaching.”