KARACHI: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) has issued an important directive regarding the detained local government (LG) representatives ahead of the elections for the heads of local councils, including mayors, deputy mayors, chairmen and vice-chairmen.
The ECP has instructed the government to grant voting rights to all elected LG representatives in the forthcoming elections for mayors, deputy mayors, chairmen, and vice-chairmen of local councils.
It should be noted that several elected LG representatives from the Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) have been arrested following incidents that occurred after May 9 in Sindh.
The ECP’s order requires the government to ensure the presence of all arrested elected LG representatives from across Sindh by issuing production orders for them.
The Election Commissioner (EC) of Sindh has sent a letter to the provincial chief secretary, directing them to ensure the attendance of all LG representatives in the upcoming polls.
Earlier, the ECP had announced the schedule for the election of mayors and deputy mayors in Sindh.
According to the details, the election will take place on June 15, and the nomination papers can be submitted on June 9-10.
The nomination papers will be reviewed by the returning officers (ROs) on June 11, and the finalised list of candidates will be released on June 14.
On June 16, the ROs will declare the election results, and the successful candidates will be sworn in on June 19.
The Sindh government also informed the electoral body that the mayor of Karachi will be elected through a show of hands.
This clarification came in response to the election commission’s request to the local government ministry for information about the election process for the mayor of Karachi.
The provincial government stated that the mayor’s election will be conducted through a show of hands method, in accordance with the Sindh Local Government Amendment Act.
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