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November 17, 2021

Govt 'bulldozes' legislation on EVMs, voting rights to expats amid Opp’s ruckus

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Staff Report

November 17, 2021

Govt 'bulldozes' legislation on EVMs, voting rights to expats amid Opp’s ruckus
  • Govt gets 33 bills passed including SBP autonomy, chemical castration for rapists
  • Shehbaz terms EVMs as 'Evil, Vicious' Voting Machines
  • Qureshi says aim of EVMs is to 'bury evil designs' of imposing government's will

ISLAMABAD: The PTI-led government Wednesday achieved a crucial victory in the parliament's joint session as it got the Elections (Amendment) Bill, 2021 passed through a majority vote, granting voting rights to overseas Pakistanis and the use of electronic voting machines (EVMs).

The opposition, in protest, tore copies of the day's agenda and walked out of the session in protest. The bill on the use of EVMs was earlier deferred at the request of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan but it was later put up for a vote.

The joint session of both chambers of Parliament was convened to debate two dozen legislative items, including the contentious electoral reforms bills which last week witnessed 11th-hour postponement of a similar sitting following tensions in the ruling coalition over the long-promised reforms.

Following the protest, leaders of opposition parties gathered in the chambers of the opposition leader Shehbaz Sharif to ponder over a future course of action.

The rather unanticipated development came hours after the government deferred voting on one of the proposals related to the introduction of EVMs following fierce resistance from the opposition benches which warned it would reject the results of the 2023 polls 'right away' if the government attempted to 'bulldoze' the legislation.

In order to avoid a situation where lawmakers from the opposition and government got into a physical altercation, the sergeants-at-arms were seen standing shoulder-to-shoulder to create a barrier between the two sides.

The bills were passed through a majority vote as 221 lawmakers supported the bills while opposition managed to poll 203 votes.

The opposition argued that as per the Rules of Procedure and Conduct of Business in the National Assembly, 2007, the government required a majority of the total membership of the NA and Senate to get a bill passed in a joint session, which amounts to 223 members.

However, the government side contended that as per Article 72 of the Constitution, it required a simple majority of the members present during a joint sitting to get a bill passed. NA Speaker Asad Qaiser ruled that the Constitution held precedence over the Rules.

Pakistan Tehreek-i-Insaf (PTI) government said it aimed at introducing electoral reforms to ensure transparency in the next general elections to be held in 2023.

The use of EVMs and an internet-based voting regime, for Pakistan nationals living abroad, are two main points of the reform package proposed by the government.

These reforms have been suggested in the context of the controversy-marred last general elections in 2018 whose results were objected to by the opposition parties.

The last general polls, like the previous ones, were held in the country while using the conventional voting system.

One of the major controversies surrounding the conduct of the last polls was the near-breakdown of the Result Transmission System (RTS) developed by the Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) for electronic dispatch of results of every polling station for its compilation by the electoral officials.

Earlier, the bill on the use of EVMs was deferred at the request of Adviser to the Prime Minister on Parliamentary Affairs Babar Awan, but it was later taken up again and put up to a vote.

The government then moved ahead with numerous other important bills including:

  • The International Court of Justice (Review and Re-consideration) Bill, 2021
  • The Islamabad Capital Territory Charities Registration, Regulation and Facilitation Bill, 2021
  • The National College of Arts Institute Bill, 2021.

    ICJ review and reconsideration bill passed

    The parliament also passed a bill to provide for the right of review and reconsideration in the Kulbhushan Jadhav case to bring into effect the judgment of the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

    The International Court of Justice (Review and Re-consideration) Bill, 2020, was moved by Law Minister Farogh Nasim. It was passed with a majority vote.

    The statement of objects and reasons of the bill says that the government of India initiated proceedings against Pakistan in the ICJ concerning alleged violations of the Vienna Convention on Consular Relations in the matter of the detention and trial of an Indian national, Commander Kulbhushan Sudhir Jadhav of Indian spy agency RAW, who was sentenced to death by a military court in Pakistan in April 2017.

    The ICJ gave its judgment on July 17, 2019, wherein it observed that Pakistan was under an obligation to provide by means of its own choosing effective review and reconsideration of the conviction and sentence of Jadhav, so as to ensure that full weight was given to the effect of the violation of the rights set forth in Article 36 of the Vienna Convention, taking account of paragraphs 139, 145 and 146 of the judgment.

    In order to give full effect to the said judgment, it is necessary that a mechanism for review and reconsideration of Pakistan's own choice be provided.

'EVIL, VICIOUS' VOTING MACHINES

In his address, Shehbaz Sharif slammed the government for 'bulldozing' the legislative process and said the voting machines were 'evil and vicious' in nature.

"I have received your [speaker's] letter. We have carefully considered it and given you the full response. I commend the opposition members for not coming under government pressure," he told Qaiser.

Sharif said the government and its coalition partners wanted to bulldoze the bills as they did in the past and declared the government was not sincere in creating a consensus on proposed reforms.

"The nation and history will not forgive the speaker if these bills were bulldozed today, he said. In response, Qaiser said he will never violate the rules of business.

Sharif then said that in order to prove his impartiality, Qaiser should quit the PTI and the opposition parties "will welcome him with open arms".

Only three meetings were held on the subject of electoral reforms in June, August and September, he observed, adding that during the tenure of PML-N, at least 117 meetings were held on the topic to achieve consensus.

The PTI is avoiding dialogue on these reforms because it wanted to get these 'black laws' passed, he reiterated.

Sharif further said the proposed electoral law was an attempt of the PTI party to prolong its tenure, adding that never in its history, Pakistan had such a "fascist" regime in power corridors.

The opposition leader also urged the speaker to prorogue the joint session so that proper debate could be held on the subject.

POLLS TRANSPARENCY SOLE AIM OF REFORMS: QURESHI

Taking to the floor, Foreign Minister Shah Mahmood Qureshi said the government wanted to introduce a credible and transparent regime for elections through legislation.

He said the reforms were aimed at protecting the electoral process from being stolen. He asked the opposition parties to also vote in favour of the bills.

He pointed out that questions have always been raised on the elections held since the 1970s.  He said the time had come to set a straight course and ensure the transparency and credibility of the process.

Qureshi said the government, on its part, time and again approached the opposition parties on the reforms. He recalled it repeatedly attempted to give demonstrations to the opposition parties on the machines.

He added the aim of introducing EVMs was to 'bury the evil designs and vicious mindset' of imposing the sitting government's will.

The foreign minister said the ruling coalition was fully united and had the majority in the House to get the reforms bills passed.

He said the Pakistan nationals living abroad were the country's precious asset and they will be involved in the decision-making process. He said the overseas Pakistanis will be given the right to vote.

PPP SEEKS CONSENSUS

The PPP chief, who spoke before Qureshi, urged the government to achieve consensus on electoral reforms after consultations with the opposition parties.

Criticising the 'one-sided' electoral reforms which he said have never before been seen in Pakistan's history, Zardari advised against haste on the matter, asserting the legislation should be impartial and give anyone the opportunity to raise objections or point fingers.

He said that if the government had followed in the footsteps of its predecessor, the PML-N, then the opposition would have taken part in the legislation process.

"If we carried out reforms together then the next election would not be controversial and it would have been the prime minister's success."

However, he said the opposition would not accept the results of the next election if the government continued in the manner it was proceeding in now.

He said that the PML-N and the PPP supported giving voting rights to overseas Pakistanis and noted they had representation in Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJ&K), calling for introducing a similar system in the rest of the country.

"How can we accept your suggestion where Pakistanis sitting in Paris, California and Britain decide for the people of Karachi and the tribal areas? They should have their own electoral college."

"If you have to give relief to anyone then it should be the poor people of Pakistan who are facing a multitude of problems [...] how can you expect that we will permit you to use this House to give an NRO to that Indian spy?"

CRUCIAL SESSION

Prime Minister Imran Khan arrived at Parliament House shortly before the session began.

Also before the sitting, Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) Chairman Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari, who arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday, met with National Assembly Opposition Leader and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) President Shehbaz Sharif at the latter's chamber.

A similar session scheduled for November 11 was postponed at the last minute after the opposition MPs twice defeated the government during voting on two motions for the admissibility of the proposals.

Ahead of today's session, Minister for Information Fawad Chaudhry expressed hope MPs would adopt the law to grant voting rights to overseas Pakistanis.

In a tweet, the minister said that the PTI would complete another one of its election promises once this is done.

"The laws on electronic voting machines and voting rights for overseas Pakistanis will prove to be a milestone in strengthening democracy in Pakistan," he said.

Today's session was convened after the government addressed the reservations of its coalition partners and evolved consensus on the matter, said Chaudhry.

Earlier this week, Prime Minister Khan held back-to-back meetings with the leaders of allied parties including Muttahida Qaumi Movement-Pakistan (MQM-P) and Pakistan Muslim League-Quaid (PML-Q). However, no politician from the allied parties has spoken to the media on the matter.

Also, on Monday, Minister for Interior Sheikh Rasheed Ahmed said the coalition allies had agreed on the bills that are to be tabled in the sitting today.

Ahmed had said it is the prime minister’s dream to introduce EVMs in elections as it would ensure transparency and resolve the issue of mistrust in the electoral system.

OPPOSITION 'FINE TUNES' STRATEGY:

On Tuesday, Sharif contacted major leaders of the opposition and discussed with them a unified strategy for today’s session.

He telephoned Zardari, Qaumi Watan Party (QWP) chief Aftab Ahmed Khan Sherpao, Balochistan National Party-Mengal (BNP-M) chief Sardar Akhtar Mengal, Awami National Party (ANP) leader Amir Haider Khan Hoti, Muhammad Shafiq Tareen, National Party chief Abdul Malik Baloch, National Democratic Movement (NDM) leader Mohsin Dawar and Jamaat-i-Islami (JI) emir Siraj ul-Haq.

During his phone call to Zardari, Sharif discussed the matters pertaining to the joint strategy of the united opposition during today’s joint parliamentary session.

The PPP chairman, during the telephonic conversation, told Sharif the "anti-people policies" of the government should be reversed through parliament.

Zardari told Sharif that in the recent past, the opposition parties had compelled the “selected PTI-led government” to retreat on several occasions.

The PPP chairman went on to add that the success against the government was achieved because of the unity of the opposition.

PTI governmentEVMsElectronic Voting MachinesVoting Rightsopposition
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