KARACHI: The Election Com­m­i­ssion of Pakistan (ECP) on Sat­urday said it was not technically equipped to introduce and handle biometric system during the overly-hyped NA-246 by-election, citing that any such action taken in haste could bring the whole electoral process into question.

ECP secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh Mohammad stated this while briefing the media after holding a meeting with senior officials at the Sindh office of the commission in Karachi. He was accompanied by Sindh ECP member retired Justice Roshan Ali Essani.

“The provincial election commission in Sindh had proposed the use of biometric system while the electoral reforms committee of the parliament also had sought suggestions on the matter. The ECP has made it clear that it has no suitable arrangements for this facility and any action in this regard taken in haste could throw the entire process into question,” the ECP secretary said.

However, he said, the ECP decided to install closed-circuit television cameras at all polling stations for the NA-246 by-election and ensure that the polling was completed without any power outage in the constituency.

He said extraordinary security arrangements would be in place during voting, as every polling station was considered sensitive and merited to be secured with intense security.

The secretary said Rangers officials and presiding officers of the polling stations had been given magisterial powers, while large contingents of the paramilitary force would be posted in and around the polling stations.

“Some 7,300 policemen will be there to secure 213 polling stations with 769 polling booths where around 2,500 polling staff will oversee the voting process,” he added.

The top ECP official said that nobody, except the presiding officer, would be allowed to use mobile phone during the polling process. Besides, he added, the polling staff would reach their designated stations a day before the polling.

According to the ECP, the total population in the NA-246 constituency is more than 700,000 with over 353,700 registered voters for whom 358,500 ballot papers had been published. There are a total of 3,585 books of ballot papers duly printed with complete serial number on exclusive printing paper. Pakistan Army and Rangers would be responsible to deliver ballot papers to their designated destinations, the ECP official said.

He said the ECP had received certain complaints vis-à-vis a code of conduct and that would be taken care of.

Besides, he added, the Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf had filed a complaint regarding alleged ghost polling stations, which was being scrutinized and the returning officer had been asked to investigate.

Justice Essani said the ECP had to take extraordinary measures to hold the by-election in view of huge sensationalism caused by the media. He said they had taken every possible measure according to the powers they had.

Earlier, the ECP secretary presided over a meeting at the provincial election commission’s office which was attended by Chief Secretary Siddique Memon, Sindh police chief Ghulam Haider Jamali, Rangers officials and other senior officials.

The ECP officials also paid a surprise visit to the constituency and were pleased to see that law and order was ‘satisfactory’. “It is our mission to ensure free and fair elections in NA-246. I have personally inspected the constituency and found conditions of the area normal,” the ECP secretary said.

Published in Dawn, April 19th, 2015

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