ISLAMABAD: Attorney General for Pakistan Khalid Jawed Khan on Saturday said the proposed constitutional amendment bill for allowing an open ballot in the upcoming Senate elections did not seek to disturb the existing system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote as provided in Article 59(2) of the Constitution.

In fact the proposed 26th Constitution Amendment sought to add only the word ‘open’ between the words ‘transferable vote’, explained the attorney general when approached by Dawn.

He was giving his response to the statement of an opposition leader that the amendment to Article 59(2) seeks to replace the word “transferable” with the word “open” and this deletion in actual fact means that the system of proportional representation of a single transferable vote is being replaced. The purpose of the single transferrable vote was to allow all shades of political opinion present in the provincial assemblies to be reflected at the federal level i.e. in the House of Federation, the Senate, the opposition party leader stated.

No move to disturb existing system of proportional representation

In response, the AG explained that this was not correct and if the 26th Constitution Amendment bill was read carefully, it only sought to add or insert the word ‘open’ after the word ‘transferable’ in Article 59(2).

All that the amendment sought to achieve was to provide for open and traceable ballot in the existing system of proportional representation by means of the single transferable vote, he said.

Published in Dawn, January 31st, 2021