It is the responsibility of the election commission to oversee the elections and make the results foolproof.
KARACHI: While the media was reporting about recent rigging allegations in a tongue-in-cheek manner, it now turns out that these allegations were indeed true and that the votes of polling station 246 in NA-68 were counterfeit. It is of no consequence to decide if the votes were manipulated consciously or as the result of a typing mistake.
The Election Commission of Pakistan (ECP) bears responsibility for the correctness of all results and has the obligation to check and double-check the counting until it is sure that no mistake — conscious or unconscious — has been made. The election process in a democratic system is an important part — perhaps, the most important part — of the whole system because the credibility and authority of the elected government rests on the election process and its results. This means that any mistake in that process undermines the new government and parliament which can have dire consequences, especially in a country like Pakistan where the state and the government is already very weak.
It is the responsibility of the election commission to oversee the elections and make the results foolproof. The probe has shown that the ECP has failed to do so and has, therefore, failed in its responsibility towards the Pakistani people. It should be dissolved and a new electoral watchdog should be installed so as to remove all doubts that have been sown in the public regarding the election results. A new commission should probe all remaining allegations to completion, thus restoring the trust in the sitting parliament and government.
Ali Ashraf Khan
Published in The Express Tribune, May 23rd, 2014.
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