Imran pushes for polls transparency to ensure fair elections

ISLAMABAD: Observing that electronic voting was essential to ensure transparency and enable millions of Pakistan nationals living abroad to vote in the next general elections, Prime Minister Imran Khan on Tuesday directed his cabinet to prepare a feasibility study on electronic voting machines (EVM) on a priority basis.

Chairing a meeting of the cabinet, the prime minister said: "We need to use EVM technology for transparent elections and I want regular updates on it."

وزیراعظم عمران خان کا کابینہ اجلاس سے اظہار خیال. https://t.co/TulySwdVfw

— Government of Pakistan (@GovtofPakistan) March 9, 2021

"The country cannot bear the kind of elections which were held in the past," he added. "Necessary steps should be taken to end corrupt practices in elections as witnessed in the Senate polls."

Tuesday's address comes days after PM Imran, after winning a trust vote on Saturday, vowed to pursue electoral reforms.

“We are bringing modern technology in elections for a transparent election process. We have decided to use EVMs in the future. It is important to use them to counter the voter fraud claims made by the losing candidates. We are also working on putting up a system so that the overseas Pakistanis can cast their votes,” he had said.

During his address on Tuesday, Imran also directed the cabinet members to draw up a plan for the purchase of EVMs, saying he wanted to avoid any excuses of "we're not prepared for this technology" when the time to use the machines comes.

The prime minister also mentioned a "frightening report" by the Financial Accountability, Transparency, and Integrity (FACTI) panel, a UN transparency watchdog.

The report revealed that every year $1 trillion is transferred from poor economies to rich countries and tax havens through money laundering. "Money belonging to poor countries, stolen through corruption, is lying in tax havens," it said.

He said that the ruling elites and officeholders of such countries have to send the ill-gotten wealth abroad otherwise it becomes noticeable.

"They do this by weakening the institutions responsible for monitoring money laundering and illicit financial flows.

"They bring in [development] projects not because the country needs them but because they get a lot of kickbacks. Big [infrastructure] projects with mega kickbacks," said the prime minister.

Presently, $7 trillion worth of stolen assets were parked in these safe havens causing irreparable loss to developing nations such as Pakistan, he said.

"Politicians including PPP chairperson Asif Ali Zardari and PML-N supreme leader Nawaz Sharif laundered their ill-gotten wealth.

Such politicians normalise corruption in a society, bribe media groups and remove checks and balances to facilitate the money laundering chain.”

"The nation has to pay for this by incurring debt and the price of that debt has to be paid through inflation," he said.

Imran reiterated that even nations struck by great calamities could "stand back up", citing the examples of Germany and Japan in the Second World War.

The greatest destruction is caused when morality is eliminated in society, he said.

"We saw this in the [Senate] elections. Money was openly exchanged and everyone knows the drama we witnessed."