ISLAMABAD: As the term of the national as well as Sindh and Balochistan assemblies set to expire in less than two months, the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has switched to election mode to make arrangements for the mega electoral exercise.

A meeting of the ECP held under the chairmanship of Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja was briefed by Secretary Omar Hamid Khan on the steps and arrangements made so far for the upcoming general election.

He said procurement of paper for necessary election material and ballot papers had been completed and its safe storage had been ensured.

Similarly, he said, the draft list of polling stations has also been prepared, which will be handed over to returning officers immediately after the notification so that they can publish it initially. And, after hearing the objections and suggestions of the voters, the ECP will ensure its final publication in accordance with the law, he said.

The last date for registration, exclusion and verification of voters as per law is July 13.

For this purpose, the ECP has started an awareness campaign and it is in touch with all institutions, including Nadra, for printing and distribution of electoral rolls.

Procurement of paper for polling material and ballots completed

The ECP was also briefed about the conduct of local government elections in Punjab and Quetta. The commission was informed that the Balochistan government has to issue a notification under the order dated Dec 23, 2022 of Balochistan High Court under which the ECP has to provide the number of towns, number of seats and other data/information of Quetta so that the ECP can start work on delimitation.

The commission was informed that the registration of electoral groups in Punjab would be completed on July 17.

Published in Dawn, June 20th, 2023