PESHAWAR: Local officials of the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) here have launched a campaign to check violations of the code of conduct during the ongoing local government elections and removed oversized electoral publicity materials, including banners, placards and signboards, of the candidates.

The drive has been launched in all tehsils of the Peshawar region simultaneously and it will continue till last day of the poll campaign, a senior official of the ECP told Dawn.

He said the district administration and tehsil municipal authorities had been assisting the officials of the ECP.

“Oversized banners, placards, signboards and panaflexes have been removed during the campaign so far,” he said.

Officials remove oversized publicity banners, signboards of candidates

According to the code of conduct framed by the ECP for Local Government Elections, 2021, the allowed size of poster for the candidates contesting elections for the post of mayor/chairman of tehsil council is 18x23 inches, size of pamphlet/handbill/leaflet is 9x6 inches, banner 9x3 feet and portrait 2x3 feet.

Similarly, for candidates contesting the election for different seats of village and neighbourhood councils, the size of poster allowed by the ECP is 2x3 feet and banner 3x9 feet.

“Our monitoring teams are active, mostly in the Peshawar city tehsil to ensure the implementation of the ECP code of conduct,” the official said.

After removal of the oversized electoral publicity materials, if the candidates again installed the same the regional election commissioner can impose heavy fine on them, the official said.

In Bajaur, district police officer Abdul Samad Khan on Saturday took notice of several police officials conducting campaigns for candidates in the local government elections on social media in Bajaur district and ordered initiating legal action against the personnel involved in unlawful practices.

According to a statement issued by the DPO office, Abdul Samad took notice of the matter after receiving complaints from scores of candidates that some policemen were conducting campaign for their favourite candidates through their social media accounts.

The statement said the DPO termed involvement of police officials in the election campaigns for their favorite candidates on social media an unlawful act as according to the ECP rules and regulations no government servant was allowed to run poll campaign for any candidate.

Mr Samad also termed the practice against the police department’s regulations under which no police official could take part in political activities.

The statement said the DPO had launched an investigation into the matter while show cause notices had been served on all the police officials involved in the illegal activities.

In the notices, Mr Samad asked the police personnel to clarify their position about their alleged involvement in conducting election campaign for their favorite nominees through written replies within five days.

Police sources in Khar told Dawn on Saturday that over 100 police personnel, most of them constables, were allegedly involved in the poll campaign on social media.

Published in Dawn, December 5th, 2021