ECP turns down Achakzai’s plea to postpone presidential election
ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has turned down Mehmood Achakzai’s request to postpone the presidential election.
Earlier today, Mehmood Khan Achakzai, backed by the Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) and a candidate for president, had urged the ECP to delay the election due to an incomplete electoral college.
In a letter to the chief election commissioner, Achakzai pointed out that the electoral college for the presidential election was not yet complete. He expressed concern that proceeding with the election as scheduled, without the proper election or nomination of representatives for certain reserved seats, would infringe upon voters’ rights, violating fundamental rights, laws, and the constitution.
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Achakzai stressed that until the issue of vacant seats is resolved, conducting the presidential polls would be unconstitutional. He noted that the Sunni Ittehad Council had already taken legal action on the matter, resulting in an injunctive order.
This letter comes on the eve of the scheduled election across the five assemblies. Polling is set to take place from 10:00 am to 4:00 pm on March 9 at Parliament House in Islamabad and the provincial Assembly buildings in Lahore, Karachi, Peshawar, and Quetta.
Former President Asif Zardari, supported by the PML-N-led eight-party coalition, is running for election based on an agreement reached after the February 8 elections. Meanwhile, Mahmood Achakzai, representing the PTI-Sunni Ittehad Council (SIC) alliance, is the opposing candidate.
The president is elected by an electoral college comprising members from the Senate, National Assembly, and the four provincial assemblies. Given the Pakistan People’s Party’s (PPP) majority in all assemblies and the Senate, Asif Ali Zardari, the co-chairman of the PPP, is expected to become President of Pakistan for the second time.
