KARACHI: The three-day training of the final batch of returning officers (ROs) got under way in Karachi, Hyderabad, Shaheed Benazirabad and Larkana as per schedule to get them prepared for conducting local government (LG) election on Sept 20, the deadline set by the Supreme Court.

The officials being trained as ROs included assistant commissioners, principals of government colleges, bank officials and federal government employees.

Though the Sindh government has made all preparations for holding LG polls as reiterated by newly inducted Sindh Minister for Local Government Syed Nasir Hussain Shah the other day but in view of flood, which has already inundated a number of districts in the Punjab and is now moving towards Sindh, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) will request the Supreme Court on Monday for putting back the polls deadline.

The apex court had directed the ECP on March 10 to make arrangements for conducting LG polls in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab and Sindh. The election in the KPK had already been held in July while in Sindh and Punjab the polls were fixed for Sept 20.

But ECP Secretary Babar Yaqoob Fateh had expressed fear before the National Assembly’s standing committee on parliamentary affairs on Friday that it would be difficult to hold polls on the court’s deadline because of floods in Punjab and Sindh.

Besides, he said, the government servants who were deputed to perform election duty in southern Punjab had excused themselves from being available because of their engagements in flood affected areas. Therefore, he said, the ECP would request the apex court to allow the commission to conduct phase-wise elections in Sindh.

Sindh Minister for Local Government Nasir Hussain Shah had said earlier the government was prepared to hold election across the province on Sept 20 except in those districts which faced threat of inundation in the imminent deluge. The polls could be held there in the second phase, he said.

According to the Election Commissioner Sindh, Tanveer Zaki, the decision about holding election in phases had to be taken by the apex court. However, the training programme for ROs and other officials for election duty was going on according to the schedule, he said.

He said that training of some 300 plus ROs started from July 13 in six districts and in each batch district officials from three districts were being trained while in Karachi training of all six district officials would be completed by July 28.

He said that preliminary list of voters was put on display for voters to verify their entry and get it rectified if there was any error by submitting a form available at the display centers.

Published in Dawn, July 27th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play