PESHAWAR, Oct 8: Elections of all trade organisations and associations for 2007-08 will be held on the basis of old rules instead of the Trade Organisations Ordinance of 2007.

The ministry of commerce recently issued directives stating that the federal government had withheld the finalisation of new memoranda and articles of associations because of procedural delays in making new rules effective, officials of the Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI) told Dawn.

According to officials, after promulgation of the new ordinance, the commerce ministry had received applications for grant of licences to the existing trade organisations.

Applications were scrutinised and certain deficiencies were reported. A large number of trade organisations requested for more time to remove the same, the officials said.

The officials said the federal government had decided to allow more time on a case-to-case basis and ordered that the elections of existing trade organisations, except for the Federation of Pakistan Chamber of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI), would be held under the old rules.

According to fresh instructions, the elections will be held on the basis of voters’ list up-dated until July 31. The process would be completed between October and December.

The new office-bearers will assume charge of their offices from Jan 1, 2008, while their tenures will expire on Sept 30, 2008. Under the Trade Organisations Ordinance of 2007, elections would be held in accordance with the new memoranda and articles of association in July-Sept 2008. —Bureau Report