ECP says cantonment board elections must be held by August 8

ISLAMABAD: The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) said on Wednesday that local government elections in 42 cantonment boards across the country must be conducted by August 8.

The announcement came after a consultative meeting on the upcoming cantonment board polls chaired by Chief Election Commissioner Sikandar Sultan Raja, according to an official statement.

The statement said consultations with the federal government and completion of legal formalities would be carried out in time to enable the ECP to announce the election schedule and hold the polls.

In his opening remarks, Raja underscored the significance of local governments. The statement said he noted that local governments were in place in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and Balochistan, while under Article 140(A) of the Constitution, the responsibility for conducting local government elections rests with the ECP.

Raja said “These elections are conducted under laws framed by the provincial governments”, according to the statement.

During the meeting, the ECP was informed that the previous local government elections in the 42 cantonment boards were held on September 12, 2021. The term of cantonment boards is four years from the date members take oath.

The statement said the term of the last cantonment board, Kamra, ended on April 11.

The commission had earlier issued a schedule for delimitation of wards in the 42 cantonment boards on January 16, while the final list of constituencies is to be published on April 20.

A senior ECP official said the commission was ready to conduct the cantonment board local government elections.

Legal requirements and consultation

According to the statement, Section 219(4) of the Elections Act, 2017 makes it mandatory for the ECP to hold elections within 120 days of the expiry of the term of the relevant local government. On that basis, it said, the cantonment board elections need to be held by August 8.

The statement further said that under Section 219(3), the ECP must consult the federal government before announcing the election schedule.

Section 19D(2) of the Cantonments Act, 1924 requires a formal written request from the federal government to the ECP for the holding of cantonment board elections.

According to the handout, the ECP was asked during the meeting to consult the federal government in order to determine the date for the local government elections in cantonments.

Besides ECP members, the meeting was attended by the director general of Military Lands and Cantonments and the additional secretary of the Ministry of Defence. The statement said both officials assured full cooperation for the timely conduct of local government elections in cantonments.

On the occasion, the additional secretary of the Ministry of Defence said that after the 18th Constitutional Amendment, the conduct of local government elections had become a regular and continuous process, the statement added.