The ECP has finally put its foot down, letting the government know that the Commission alone is authorised to issue the schedule for the Senate elections. The Commission made it clear that the elections cannot be held before February 10. As things stand the Senate electoral body is still incomplete on account of seven National Assembly and provincial assembly seats being still vacant. In the light of the schedule announced by the ECP, the last by-election will be held on February 19. Thus it is the last week of February when the Senate polls can take place, at the earliest. The government would have done well to consult the ECP instead of taking recourse to the Supreme Court if there was any way other than constitutional amendment to elect Senators through open ballot rather than secret ballot. For the common man there is little ambiguity in Article 226 of the Constitution which explicitly stipulates, by use of the mandatory “shall”, that “All elections under the Constitution, other than those of the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister, shall be by secret ballot.”
The Senate elections pose a dilemma for the PDM. The opposition alliance has yet to decide whether to leave the field open for the ruling alliance. The PPP does not want to let the ruling alliance grab the maximum seats in the Upper House of the Parliament. For this the PPP will have to take part in the by-elections for two provincial assembly seats in Sindh. The other components of the PDM however want to resign from the assemblies irrespective of the consequences and may not participate in the by-polls.
As a temporary way out to maintain the PDM’s unity, the PPP too has called for its lawmakers resignations to be sent to the party leadership, signifying that it is willing to resign though it would do so at the appropriate time when other options like a march on Islamabad followed by a sit-in have been exhausted and resignations remain the only way out. The issue is likely to turn up at the next PDM summit. What remains to be seen is whether the opposition parties are able to maintain their unity.
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2020/12/22/senate-elections-8/
Senate elections: edit in Pakistan Today, Dec 23, 2020
The ECP has finally put its foot down, letting the government know that the Commission alone is authorised to issue the schedule for the Senate elections. The Commission made it clear that the elections cannot be held before February 10. As things stand the Senate electoral body is still incomplete on account of seven National Assembly and provincial assembly seats being still vacant. In the light of the schedule announced by the ECP, the last by-election will be held on February 19. Thus it is the last week of February when the Senate polls can take place, at the earliest. The government would have done well to consult the ECP instead of taking recourse to the Supreme Court if there was any way other than constitutional amendment to elect Senators through open ballot rather than secret ballot. For the common man there is little ambiguity in Article 226 of the Constitution which explicitly stipulates, by use of the mandatory “shall”, that “All elections under the Constitution, other than those of the Prime Minister and the Chief Minister, shall be by secret ballot.”
The Senate elections pose a dilemma for the PDM. The opposition alliance has yet to decide whether to leave the field open for the ruling alliance. The PPP does not want to let the ruling alliance grab the maximum seats in the Upper House of the Parliament. For this the PPP will have to take part in the by-elections for two provincial assembly seats in Sindh. The other components of the PDM however want to resign from the assemblies irrespective of the consequences and may not participate in the by-polls.
As a temporary way out to maintain the PDM’s unity, the PPP too has called for its lawmakers resignations to be sent to the party leadership, signifying that it is willing to resign though it would do so at the appropriate time when other options like a march on Islamabad followed by a sit-in have been exhausted and resignations remain the only way out. The issue is likely to turn up at the next PDM summit. What remains to be seen is whether the opposition parties are able to maintain their unity.
https://www.pakistantoday.com.pk/2020/12/22/senate-elections-8/
Published in Pak Media comment and Pakistan