ISLAMABAD, Oct 12: The government has taken note of all the points contained in the Preliminary Statement of the European Union Election Observation Mission on the general elections in Pakistan, an official announcement says.

The Government of Pakistan is satisfied that the mission has commended a number of positive steps taken to improve the electoral process, it says on Saturday.

Following is a preliminary reaction to the findings and conclusions of the EU Observers Mission:

—The mission’s conclusion that the Pakistani authorities were engaged in “unjustified interference with the electoral arrangements and the democratic process”, which resulted in “serious flaws in the electoral process”, is indeed unfortunate. This is just not true. There was no such policy or plan. In fact, the president of Pakistan had extended his personal pledge of the fairness and transparency of the electoral process and had, therefore, ensured that the election observers, as well as the foreign media, were provided full and unfettered access to any part of the country.

—The Election Commission of Pakistan is autonomous and is invested with statutory powers to enforce electoral laws and prevent malpractice. A very senior former chief justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan heads it. The commission has done a reasonable job of organizing a mammoth election for an electorate that had been enlarged to nearly 72 million because of lowering of voting age from 21 to 18. The Election Commission also prepared fresh and updated electoral rolls in accordance with the latest population census. For the first time, elections to both the national and provincial assemblies were held the same day, adding to the burden of logistical arrangements.

—The allegation against the president as having “imposed serious restriction on campaign activities” together with the commissioner of Islamabad is baseless. Equating the president with a local official in promulga-tion of laws is ridiculous.

—In July this year, the chief election commissioner had directed that the federation and the provinces should not use state resources anywhere in Pakistan for unfair advantage. Some local infractions may have occurred, but that should not be generalized beyond reasonable limits.

—Leaders of political parties were given a fair share of airtime to express their views in various programmes on PTV and PBC, which has been widely appreciated by the politicians and the nation.

—The observation of the mission that the government overstepped the limits set by the judgment of the Supreme Court of May 12, 2000, in that it had altered the salient features of the 1973 Constitution from a parliamentary to a presidential one is incorrect. The constitutional reforms introduced by the government have been undertaken with the best of intentions. The purpose of these amendments is to introduce the much-needed checks and balances in our political system and to strengthen democracy. The purpose is not to institutionalize the role of the military in governance, but to make democracy more sustainable in keeping with the specific democratic experience of Pakistan. As mandated by the Supreme Court, these amendments are minimum essential and do not change the basic character of the Constitution.

—The mission has not properly appreciated the nature and role of the National Security Council (NSC). The council is to serve as a forum for consultations and will not be an intrusive or divisive institution. On the contrary, it is meant to promote greater harmony and coordination among various institutions and the government. The 13-member NSC will only have four nominated members. The nine elected members would have a clear and decisive role in the NSC deliberations.

—The Government of Pakistan, however, joins the mission in its hope that following the completion of this election process, all parties would work together to achieve the establishment of good governance in Pakistan.—APP