- How something routine is made a problem
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP), through a letter from the Chief Election Commissioner to the Prime Minister, has been forced to ask for the publication of the final 2017 census, so that it can go about its task of carrying out fresh delimitations, and then holding fresh elections for all the local bodies in the country, all of which have been dissolved after the completion of their tenures. Indeed, the 120-day mandatory period between dissolution and the holding of fresh elections remains only for Sindh as all other provinces have passed that timeframe.
The main reason for the delay has been the MQM’s refusal to accept the results, claiming that the population was undercounted in its strongholds, with the consequent result for Assembly representation and funds distribution, among other things. A constitutional amendment had let the ECP conduct delimitations and hold General Elections on the basis of preliminary results. The MQM only agreed to it on the condition that a forensic audit of 10 percent of census blocks was conducted. As the ECP has pointed out, the amendment only provided a one-time waiver, for the 2018 elections, and did not apply to the local body elections.
The publication of a final result is the responsibility of the government. It has not done so. More significantly, it has neither conducted the forensic audit demanded by the MQM, nor persuaded it to withdraw its objections. The PPP is also objecting to the results. It has not been approached either. This is a little surprising, as the PTI has always championed strong local bodies as the bedrock of democracy.
Another letter from the ECP Secretary to the Parliamentary Affairs Secretary shows a way out, but that is rather cumbersome: that a constitutional amendment is passed to waive the condition. Even then, the government would have to win support from the opposition, something it has been loath to do so far, accusing it of being corrupt. If instead of focusing on finding new ways of persecuting the opposition, if it was to concentrate on finding ways of carrying out the routine but essential tasks of government, like publishing the census results, it might find itself rewarded in the long run.
