SWABI, Jan 17: Central chairman of Swabi Qaumi Mahaz, Dr Salim and former provincial secretary of Pakistan Tehrik-i-Insaf Asad Qaiser have welcomed the restoration of joint electorate system and termed the educational qualification condition “a revolutionary step” which would boost the democratic values in the country.

They were talking to the local journalists here on Thursday about the electoral reforms which stipulated increasing of women seats from 20 to 60 and reserving of 25 seats for the technocrats.

Dr Salim said under the previous electoral rules even thumb-impression makers had not only been elected MNAs but they also became ministers who remained at the mercy of highly qualified bureaucrats, resulting in derailing and defaming of the democratic governments.

“An illiterate elected person had never represented his voters in the lawmaking process. When such millionaires reached the parliament, they did not participate in the nation building and only devised plans for accumulating wealth,” he said.

The parliamentarians were primarily legislators but if they were uneducated, how could they take part in such a process, he queried.

Asad Qaiser welcomed the increasing of women seats in the national assembly, hoping that this principle would also be upheld in the provincial assemblies which according to him would boost the morale of the womenfolk, victimized as they were since long.

HE SAID: “Increasing of women seats was a good idea. Over the last 53 years, half of our population had remained without representation which created a sense of deprivation among the families”.